


Strange Bedfellows

by Redqueenswrath



Series: Atypical Love [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: A/B/O AND Stanford with a hint of Coffee House AU thrown in for shits and giggles, A/B/O verse, Alpha Sam Winchester, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Anal Sex, Asexual Sam Winchester, Attempted Suicide, Beta Jody Mills, Breeding Kink, Castiel in Heat, Character Death, Discussion of A/B/O biology, I swear there will be a happy ending, It's all fun and games until someone giggles and shits, M/M, Making Out, Male omegas are rare, Masturbation, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Naomi and Alistair are Castiel's parents, No mpreg, Omega Castiel, Rape, Rape Aftermath, Rimming, Sex negotations, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, but damn does he deserve it, graphic description of rape, unwanted heat, wtf is wrong with me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-12
Updated: 2018-03-19
Packaged: 2019-03-17 11:53:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 14
Words: 39,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13658448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redqueenswrath/pseuds/Redqueenswrath
Summary: In a world dictated by Alpha, Beta, and Omega dynamics, Castiel expects to present as Alpha when it's time. He could be a beta, of course, but male omegas are all but unheard of. When his first heat blindsides him, his Alpha father is thrown into Rut and forces himself on sixteen-year-old Castiel. After a string of suicide attempts and a lot of therapy, Castiel is given the chance to participate in a drug study for a revolutionary new medication- heat suppressants. The only catch? He has to leave his mother in Illinois and travel to California. With the potential of a fresh start in front of him and the not-so-subtle encouragement of his therapist, Cas takes a leap of faith he didn't know he had in him and enrolls in the nursing program at Stanford. Enter Sam Winchester, his new roommate. A traumatized omega and an Alpha with a secret... what could go wrong?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Please, please don't hate me for this. I promise that Cas will get his happiness and recovery.

When Naomi and Alistair Novak welcomed their only child into the world, they had no reason to think that there would be anything unusual about the little boy. With ten toes, ten fingers, bright blue eyes, and a shock of raven hair, Castiel was a perfectly normal newborn who would have a perfectly normal childhood in the suburbs of Illinois. The lives of the Novak family were almost stereotypically boring- Alpha Male Alistair made a comfortable living working for his family’s law firm, his beautiful omega wife Naomi stayed at home to dote on her precious son, her little angel. The only blip in the radar was Castiel’s status as an only child. Large families with multiple children were very commonplace, with many mated omegas birthing a child every year or two. 

 

Castiel was fully aware of this from an early age, watching his friends cuddle and play with their younger siblings with something approaching envy. They had tried to give Castiel the sibling he clearly longed for, but after multiple losses and failed mating cycles, they had resigned themselves to being a small family. Castiel received even more doting as a byproduct, though the child never seemed to grow to be spoiled by the affection his parents lavished on him. 

 

When Castiel turned sixteen, his father took him aside to speak to him about what was soon to come. They spoke at length about what his body could be gearing up to do for the first time- Rut. The biological answer to an omega’s heat, and the driving force behind the continuation of the human race as a whole. There was, of course, the possibility that Castiel could be a beta, lacking the extreme hormonal shift that would mark him as an Alpha, though the boy’s doctor said that it was unlikely given his pedigree. 

 

At sixteen and three months precisely, Castiel woke up with an uncomfortable ball of pain in his lower abdomen. His mother called him out of school for the week as a precaution -most first Ruts were longer and more brutal than subsequent ones) and let him raid the pantry for bottles of water and plenty of snacks for the ordeal ahead of him. 

 

“Mother, it doesn’t feel right… Dad never said anything about my stomach hurting like this.” Cas tried not to whine- he was going into his first Rut, he was basically an adult. He shouldn’t be crying to his mother. 

 

Naomi stroked his hair for a moment. “It’s going to be alright, my angel. Everyone experiences these things differently.” Castiel made a noncommittal noise and retreated to his bedroom, curling up in his bed to try to catch a few hours of nap time before the Rut really set in. When he woke up, he immediately knew that something was terribly wrong. His abdomen was gripped in a vice of pain, forcing him to curl into a ball with a strained whimper. His skin burned with fever, and worst of all, he seemed to have wet his bed. Humiliated but in too much pain to stand, he did the only thing he could think of- he screamed for his mother.

 

The sound of his normally even-tempered mother thundering up the stairs was more comforting than Castiel cared to admit. There was the sound of a key scraping the lock open, and then a strangled gasp of shock.

 

“Castiel?!” Naomi was at his bedside in a heartbeat, her smooth hands cool against his inflamed cheeks. She stroked his face, pushing sweat-drenched hair out of his eyes with shaking fingers. 

 

“Mommy....” Castiel sobbed, reverting right back to his infantile self in the face of this unbearable pain. 

 

“Oh, baby… baby, I’m so, so sorry. Oh, my angel…” Naomi cradled her ill son to her chest.

 

Castiel wept into her shirt, tears and snot alike mingling on his face as he tried to choke out words. “I’m sorry I wet, mommy…” He sniffled. Naomi clutched him even closer.

 

“Angel, you didn’t wet the bed. That’s slick. You’re an- an omega.”

 

The boy went rigid, his mind grinding to a halt in terror and denial. “But only  _ girls _ are omegas! I’m a boy! I’m supposed to be an Alpha!” Castiel was near hyperventilating even as his stomach was wracked with another round of pain and the undeniable rush of wetness between his thighs. Castiel screamed.

 

“Male omegas are extremely rare, but they do exist from time to time, sweetling. And you’re one of them. I’ll call Doctor Shurley in a bit, but we need to get you cleaned up first.” Naomi guided her weeping son out of bed and to the en suite bathroom, starting a warm shower once she had him sitting on a towel on the closed toilet. “You take a nice, warm shower while I change your bedding and run into town and get you some supplies, baby.” Castiel whimpered, clinging to his mother again. She soothed him with a few gentle strokes of the hair. 

 

“I promise, I’ll be right back. Let the warm water relax your muscles for a while, then go back to bed. Fold a towel up really tightly and put it under your hips to soak up any slick you leak, I’ll buy you some sanitary pads.” The boy flinched but nodded- his mother had been a nurse before she had mated and settled down for a family of her own, and she had always been very frank about things like this in the past. Her no-nonsense attitude was as comforting as it had always been, and he smiled gratefully. 

 

“And some ice cream?” Castiel tried to force a smile to his face even as another round of cramps seized him. Naomi laughed softly and added chocolate ice cream and ibuprofen to her growing mental list.

 

“Of  _ course _ you would take after me and crave ice cream while you’re in heat. Don’t worry, angel. Your momma will take good care of you until we can get you to Doctor Shurley.” That, too, was comforting. Doctor Shurley had been the one to deliver Castiel into this world, and had been his pediatrician ever since.  _ He _ would know what was going on.  _ He _ would be able to fix this! As Naomi closed the bathroom door behind her, Castiel started stripping out of his soiled pyjamas. The bottoms hit the tile with a disgusting squelch and the boy cringed before squaring his shoulders and getting into the shower. Almost immediately, the hot water began soothing his knotted up stomach and lower back, just as his mother had promised. He sighed in gratitude and began washing the slick off of his body. When his fingers inadvertently brushed against his anus, he yelped in surprise and snatched his hand away as though it had burned him. Logically, he knew that there was really only one orifice the warm, gel-like fluid could be coming from but it was extremely disconcerting to actually feel it happening. Curiosity got the better of him and he gently probed the area again, giving a surprise groan at the unexpected pleasure. It felt shockingly good, not unlike stroking his cock...and speaking of which- hello, erection. 

 

“What...the...Hell?” Castiel hissed, both confused and aroused. His own scent, reminiscent of ozone and the ocean, became so thick that it was almost cloying in the small bathroom. Now that the pain was easing, he was becoming aware of another ache in his stomach, that of overwhelming arousal. His left hand instinctively cupped the hard flesh even as his right index finger began exploring the soaked area with a mind of its own.  _ “Oh!” _ The tip of his finger just barely breached the hole, sending a shockwave of unexpected pleasure through his core.

 

The boy nearly jumped out of his skin when there was a knock at the door, loud and insistent. “Castiel?” His father growled, and Castiel’s eyes blew wide. He slipped, coming crashing down to the bottom of the tub and ripping the shower curtain down on top of himself in his terror. His father wasn’t supposed to be home until late tonight!

 

“Don’t come in!” Castiel screamed, flailing to cover himself, but the doorknob rattled and turned anyways. Alistair Novak stepped in and went rigid in shock at the scene before him.

 

“You….!” The blond man snarled, advancing on his fallen son. “You’re an  _ omega! _ ” The word was spat with every ounce of vitriol that would have accompanied the foulest curse word in the English language. 

 

“Dad, I-” 

 

“I thought you had snuck some bitch in here with you, but it’s  _ you!” _ Castiel caught sight of his father’s eyes and bit back a scream of terror- they were full blown, Alpha rut red. Not a single drop of their normal blue remained, and Castiel’s blood ran cold. The older man snatched a handful of Castiel’s waterlogged hair and ripped him out of the tub, dragging the screaming boy across the tile and throwing him violently across the mattress. 

 

“Dad, no! Please, don’t…!” Alistair didn’t pay his increasingly panicked screaming and flailing any mind as he shoved the raven-haired omega face down into the bedding. Castiel fought as hard as he could, getting a backhand that split his lip from the Rut-mad man. He heard the sound of a belt buckle being torn open and a zipper being ripped down, and Castiel began screaming his panic, begging for someone,  _ anyone, _ to help him. Alistair laughed darkly and hit the boy again, raising an ugly bruise under Castiel’s eye.

 

“No one is going to help you, you filthy omega.” Alistair barked and slammed into Castiel’s untried hole. The boy wailed in pain and shock, thrashing to get free, but the much older, stronger man’s grip on his hips was as unyielding as iron. The Alpha began fucking him, forcing his engorged cock into the screaming boy’s hole over and over until blood tinged the slick his stupid, hormone-wracked body was  _ still _ trying to produce. Castiel’s vision was fading grey as shock overtook him and all the fight went out of his muscles. 

 

The cock tearing his insides to pieces was growing even thicker and Castiel tried to beg for mercy one last time. “Please… please don’t!” The punch thrown to the back of his skull made stars dance in his spotty vision. The next snap of the Alpha’s hips brought a whole new world of pain as his knot caught, locking him into place. Castiel gave a bloodcurdling shriek, tears streaming down his cheeks as he sobbed into his blanket.

 

“What the  _ HELL?!” _ The familiar voice of his mother rang out, accompanied by the resounding bang of the bedroom door slamming open. Naomi screamed, though more than a decade as an ER nurse kept her from freezing. Before Alistair could react, she had her cell phone out and 911 on the line. Alistair bellowed in rage and ripped himself free of the boy, setting off another round of agonized screams as his already badly abused flesh tore even worse, and threw himself at his wife. 

 

Naomi dropped the phone, ignoring the increasingly desperate yelling from the dispatcher on the other end of the line, and met the crazed man halfway with a closed fist to the jaw that sent him reeling across the room. The enraged omega was on him in an instant, her fists a blur as she threw rapidfire punches at the man she had loved for so many years, unaware of the monster that lurked inside of him. She still had him on the floor when the police arrived minutes later.

 

“Freeze!” The lead officer ordered, her gun drawn and leveled at the adults on the floor. Naomi raised her hands, waves of omega submissiveness immediately washing through her scent. 

 

“Ma’am, stand up and back away. We’ll handle this.” The police officer, a stocky, dark-haired woman with a badge that proclaimed her to be Deputy Mills, pointed towards the corner of the room, and Naomi obediently retreated. Deputy Mills returned her attention to the bloodied Alpha on the floor just in time to see him gather himself and lunge, teeth bared in an ugly snarl. 

 

“Sir, STOP!” Mills barked. Alistair ignored her, advancing with his fists raised, and Deputy Mills pulled the trigger. The report of the pistol startled a broken scream out of the sobbing boy on the bed and Alistair dropped, dead before he even hit the ground. Naomi lunged for her son, cradling his battered body in her arms and weeping into his hair. Mills lowered her smoking pistol, glancing back at the younger deputy behind her who was currently on his knees, gagging. Deputy Mills shook her head in defeat and radioed dispatch for an ambulance.

 

*****************

 

Castiel, mercifully, was sedated by the time they reached the hospital. Naomi thanked a God she no longer believed in for that, because it would prevent him from having to hear her scream at the ER staff who couldn’t wrap their heads around the concept that a  _ male _ omega was laying on their stretcher, still bleeding and covered in every bodily fluid known to man.

 

“What the bloody hell do you want us to do with him?” The first doctor that saw Castiel asked. Naomi instantly despised the smarmy British fuck. 

 

“Treat him for rape, you stupid, dense bastard!” The woman barked, gesturing with a heavily bandaged hand. Crowley, as his staff badge declared him, rolled his eyes. 

 

“We’ll treat the injuries, but it’s not like he’s going to get knocked up.”

 

Naomi’s face turned a whole new shade of red as she fought the urge to choke the life from this pompous, arrogant bastard.

 

“You’re going to get  _ knocked out _ if you continue to treat my son like this! He’s just been  _ raped!  _ He needs a full rape kit, and probably surgical repair because a knot got ripped out of him! Not to mention the psychological damage!” The brunette was pacing, her wounded hands clenched into fists as she ranted. 

 

“Whatever. I’ll be sure to get right on that.” The doctor sneered before turning away. Naomi bit her tongue.

 

“Freak.” 

 

“ _ WHAT  _ did you just say?!” 

 

“Your boy is a freak of nature. Honestly, you should just let him die.”

 

This time, the omega didn’t restrain herself and she slugged the Brit as hard as she could, sending him reeling into a cart full of medical supplies.

 

“Get the  _ fuck _ out of this room and send someone competent in! I’ll have your license for this!” 

 

The second doctor was considerably nicer.

 

**************

 

Three days after his discharge from the hospital, Castiel and his mother moved into a much smaller apartment on the other side of town. Doctor Shurley diagnosed Castiel as a genetic chimera, the result of a failed twin being reabsorbed into his body in utero. Some of her -and it had undoubtedly been a girl, a future omega- DNA had ended up altering Castiel in a medically fascinating manner. The irony that his bizarre condition was directly due to the very thing that had deprived him of siblings as a child was not lost on the young man, nor on his grief-stricken mother, and the knowledge that there were others like him out there -male omegas and female alphas- did nothing to comfort him or make him feel like less of a freak.

 

Two days after his diagnosis, he tried to take his own life with a razor blade. He was released from the psychiatric hospital after several weeks with three prescriptions for antidepressants and an appointment with a therapist who specialized in sexual trauma.Naomi hovered over him incessantly. The only time he could escape her was during his weekly appointments with Doctor Missouri Moseley, who would spend the next year and a half trying to help Castiel heal his mind long after his body had recovered. Three more unsuccessful suicide attempts later, always in the few days leading up to his heats, Doctor Moseley was reaching a point of desperation. 

 

Castiel dropped heavily onto the soft leather couch in the middle of Doctor Moseley’s office. His left wrist was heavily bandaged, a testament to his continued horror at the biological imperative that continued to rule his body. Missouri sighed heavily.

 

“Castiel…” She started, only to be cut off with a curt wave of the young man’s hand. At just shy of eighteen, the once bubbly boy was growing into a withdrawn, angry adult. In over a hundred and fifty meetings, she had never once seen him smile, nor any light return to his eyes.

 

“Let’s just get this over with.” The defeat in Castiel’s voice made her heart break- despite attempting to maintain a professional distance, Missouri had grown to care about the boy, and feared desperately for his future. That was why she had gone to the lengths she had recently, contacting other doctors in secret to find a solution.

 

“Actually, I have something I’d like to discuss with you, Castiel.” The young man grunted, and she took that as a sign to continue. “I’ve been discussing your...unique… case with several of my colleagues, and I have a proposal for you. There is a new drug that is entering the human trial phase. A hormone suppressor.” 

 

For the first time in a very, very long time, something other than pain, anger, or blankness registered on Castiel Novak’s face, and she pushed on. “It has very promising studies backing it up. If it works, it could stop heats and ruts entirely, or at minimum greatly reduce the severity of them. They are offering you a place in the trial.”

 

“Yes!” Castiel jumped to his feet, an almost crazed kind of joy in his eyes. The Beta waved him down and Castiel immediately returned to his spot on the couch.

 

“There are certain risks involved, side effects that may not have appeared during the animal testing phase, but somehow I don’t think that will deter you.” She shook her head in amusement as the omega broke into an actual smile for the first time since he was sixteen years old. “You’ll have to go and live near the lab that is testing the suppressants. They wouldn’t agree to it with you all the way out here.”

 

“Where?!” Castiel barked, his eyes blazing with intensity.

 

“Stanford, California.” Castiel blinked in surprise, and Missouri pressed her advantage. “It could be a fresh start for you. You could enroll in college, try to move on with your life.” She pushed a stack of paperwork to the edge of her desk, and Castiel peered at it. Admissions forms. Missouri had actually printed out admissions forms. 

 

The gears in his head were already turning. Stanford had an excellent health care program. What if… what if he became a doctor? He could learn to  _ help _ people like himself. With shaking hands, he gathered the stack of paper.

 

“Let's do this.”


	2. Chapter 2

Sam Winchester, looking for all the world like a six-foot tall chocolate labrador puppy in a green plaid shirt, groaned and threw himself down on his too-small, lumpy bed. The full-sized mattress was on the bare floor, and it was all he could afford on his meager student’s stipend. The vast majority of it went towards paying rent on this tiny, cramped, drafty apartment just off campus. Sam was a pre-law student at Stanford, and he had decided that he’d rather piss glass than spend another semester crammed into a dinky dorm room with three other Alphas. He had seen hell, and it was four Alphas in rut at the same time, trapped together. He shuddered at the memory. 

 

Desperate for some privacy, he had pooled every penny of his stipend and his paycheck from the bar he picked up shifts at and rented his own apartment for the summer. Unlike most of his classmates, Sam didn’t go home when classes let out. He couldn’t. So here he stayed, counting down the days until he would at least have his classes to distract him. Right now, all he could focus on was the big red ‘negative’ to the left of his bank account balance.

 

The idea of getting a roommate occurred again, and it spoke to his increasing desperation to remain off campus that he honestly considered the option. Not another Alpha, certainly. But a beta would be acceptable, or even an omega. Many people would have looked at him sideways for considering moving in with an omega, certain that he was just looking for a hole to knot. Sam cringed. Unlike every other Alpha he had ever met, Sam had exactly zero interest in knotting someone. Or having sex at all. The very concept made his stomach roll. Sam had finally come to grips with the realization that he was asexual in the middle of his first semester, when he had come back to his dorm room to find not one, not two, but all three of his roommates in compromising positions with omegas, the air chokingly thick with Rut scent. Sam had puked on the spot and spent the rest of a  _ very _ unwanted Rut hiding in a hotel room he could barely afford. He had started looking for apartments during moments of clarity, but it had taken him until the end of the semester to convince the school board to let an unmated underclassman move off campus. Which brought him circling right back around to his present situation- broke as a motherfucker and laying on a mattress on the floor, in an apartment that contained exactly one card table, one flimsy folding chair, and single set of silverware, a plate, bowl, and cup all stolen from the cafeteria on campus. His fridge was flat out empty. He was down to his last three packs of Ramen. The situation, as his big brother would have said, was absolute shit.

 

Dean… For a moment, Sam considered calling the eldest of the Winchester siblings. He was the only one who would speak to Sam at this point. Their mother had died when Sam was just a baby. Their half brother, Adam (the result of an affair with a local woman), was still in high school and Sam hadn’t had much to do with the brat. Their father had disowned Sam when he refused to mate the omega John had picked out for him, citing his distaste for sex. The brawl that had ensued had left Sam with three broken fingers that perfectly matched the fracture in John’s jaw, and John’s parting order was for Sam to take his ‘psychotic, broken-minded ass and never come back’. Sam had packed a single backpack of clothes and hitchhiked all the way to California, where he had conned his way into a scholarship with his good grades and puppy eyes. That had been almost two years ago, and Sam hadn’t heard a peep from the entire Winchester clan since. 

 

If he just swallowed his pride and asked Dean for help, Sam knew that his big brother would spot him some cash. They had always been almost alarmingly codependent, especially for a pair of Alphas. But, no. Sam’s pride wouldn’t let him go crawling back. He’d figure  _ something _ out. With that in mind, the young man retrieved the only thing of value he owned- the laptop given to him by the school- and started working on a Craigslist ad. 

 

******************

 

Naomi, predictably, had not been pleased by the idea of Castiel suddenly wanting to move to California. The only thing that had kept her from refusing altogether was the shock of seeing  _ hope _ in her son’s eyes for the first time since… well. 

 

“Mom, I can do this. I  _ need _ to do this.” There was a fire in her boy’s eyes, making them seem to glow, and Naomi smiled. 

 

“So, a medical trial  _ and _ school  _ and _ a job. Will you still have time to call your momma once in a while?” She teased, almost whooping for joy when Castiel grinned at her. 

 

“Always, mom.” 

 

They were silent for a while, just sipping their coffee and relaxing in the apartment that had been their home for two years. Finally, Naomi hummed thoughtfully. “Where will you live? On campus?”

 

Castiel flinched. “I don’t think I’m ready for roommates. What if one’s an Alpha?” Try as he might, he couldn’t seem to get over his fear of Alphas in general. Only his strict regimen of anti-anxiety and antidepressant medication kept him from being a total shut in. 

 

“What if you got an apartment off campus? I’m sure that if you explained your situation to the college, they would make an exception.” Naomi coaxed gently.

 

Now  _ that _ was a thought. The problem would be affording a decent apartment- the cost of living in California was considerably higher than Illinois. Yes, his high school grades would likely earn him a scholarship but he couldn't rely on that. He would have to take a side job, and even then whatever he could afford on his own would be little better than a cardboard box under the bridge. 

 

“Maybe if I got a roommate? Just one? I think I could handle  _ one _ roommate.” It would be a big step for him, but he couldn’t be a baby bird trapped in the nest any more. It was time for him to spread his wings and jump into the wild blue yonder. Smiling slightly to himself, Castiel reached for his laptop and began hunting. 

 

**************

 

It took an almost alarmingly short time for people to start emailing Sam, interested in sharing an apartment with him. The problem was that many of them seemed skeevy as all hell. Noticing red flag after red flag, Sam scanned dozens of messages. John Winchester had been a Marine through and through and had taught his sons well. Sam filed those emails under ‘holy shit, no’ and kept going. 

 

The last one seemed a little less strange, though the verbage was extremely formal. Sam almost laughed- it sounded like an old man writing, though the attached picture was of a raven-haired man that couldn’t have been any older than Sam. The piercing blue eyes staring back at him captivated the Winchester.

 

_ Good Afternoon, _

 

_ I am writing in reference to your posting requesting a roommate. My name is Castiel, I am eighteen years old and will be attending Stanford University in the fall. I will be moving to California in two weeks in order to begin my new job. I am in search of a roommate myself, as I am unable to reside in the campus dormitory due to a medical condition. I can assure you that I am clean, quiet, and will pay my half of all utilities and rent. If you are interested in speaking to me for further details, please reply to this message. _

 

_ Regards,  _

 

_ Castiel Novak _

 

Sam read the email several times, snickering to himself the whole time. This ‘Castiel’ sounded like he had a stick up his ass the size of a telephone pole. Still, he was the least creepy of the whole lot, and he had to admit that he was intrigued. Before he could think too hard about it, Sam clicked ‘Reply’.

 

_ Castiel, _

 

_ Hi! I’m actually very interested in learning more about you. However, my internet is extremely unreliable, so I’m going to take a leap of faith here and give you my phone number. 866-907-3235 _ _ , text me whenever. _

 

_ Talk to you soon! _

 

_ Sam _

 

With a small nod, Sam clicked ‘send’ and closed his computer, determined to get a few hours of sleep before his shift at the bar tonight. If he was lucky, he’d make enough in tips to be able to buy enough food to last him the week.

 

When he woke up, Sam was pleasantly surprised to see a text notification from an unknown number, claiming to be Castiel. He replied, briefly confirming that Castiel had the right number, before getting out of bed to start his evening. His ‘uniform’ at work was little more than dark washed jeans and a black button down, which he donned after a quick shower to wash the sleep out of his eyes. He and Castiel texted back and forth while Sam got ready for work, exchanging details and feeling out the potential roommate relationship. The Winchester elected to skip eating dinner, knowing that he could raid the kitchen at work. These days, it was the only properly filling meal he was likely to get. He sinched his belt a notch tighter and prayed that this thing with Castiel would work out- he wasn’t sure he could keep going like this. 

 

He chatted with Castiel as he walked all the way to the bar before regretfully telling him that he would have to leave his phone in the office. Castiel was very understanding and promised to speak to him again soon, and Sam was pleased to notice that his language was becoming less and less stilted. Maybe this  _ could _ work out. A peek out into the main bar showed Sam another rowdy Friday night, complete with the required bar fight. Sam tied his black apron around his waist and waded into the fray.

 

************

 

After three days of chatting, Castiel was reasonably convinced that Sam wasn’t a serial killer, at least. Their biological designations hadn’t come up in discussion and Castiel was almost reluctant to bring it up, for fear of freaking himself out. He couldn’t see Sam as being an Alpha, anyways- he seemed so nice and gentle, the man had to be a beta. That’s what the omega kept telling himself, at least.The pair had progressed to a brief phone call and the other man’s soft, soothing voice was extremely pleasant to the traumatized omega. 

 

Mind made up, Castiel decided to trust Sam. He began making plans to fly out to California in a week. Naomi seemed torn between being supportive and being terrified out of her mind for her beloved child, though Missouri had told her, in slightly more professional words, to stick a sock in it for Castiel’s sake. Thus, mother and son found themselves at the airport, bidding a tearful farewell, as Castiel’s plane began boarding.

 

“I’ll call you as soon as we land.” Castiel promised as he hugged his mother tightly. He was no longer short enough to bury his nose against her shoulder, having outgrown her by the time he was seventeen. Naomi nodded and and gently pushed him away to arms length. 

 

“You had better.” An attendant made the final call for Castiel’s flight and Naomi nudged him towards the gate. “Go, son. Go, and kick life in the ass.” Castiel snorted, hugged his mother one last time, and jogged down the hallway. He settled into his seat and listened attentively to the flight attendant’s safety lecture before taking an extra dose of his anxiety meds and securing his noise canceling headphones, queuing up an audio book and zoning out for the duration of the flight.

 

*******

 

With no car, Sam had been unable to meet Castiel at the airport. Thus they had arranged for a taxi to take the younger man to a coffee house near Sam's apartment. Sam was very wary of frightening Castiel off, so neutral ground seemed like a good place to meet face to face for the first time. If either of them wasn't ok with the other, Cas could get a hotel until he could work something else out. As if he had heard Sam thinking about him, Castiel’s text tone went off to inform Sam that he had landed and found the taxi, and would be at the coffee house in half an hour. Sam immediately set off, knowing that it would take him a few minutes to get there. 

Sam had a good relationship going with Charlie, the bubbly redhead barista at the coffee shop. The moment she laid eyes on him in the doorway, she waved cheerfully and started making Sam's favorite iced caramel macchiato. Sam pretended not to notice that she threw in several extra pumps of caramel, or that she snatched a broken Danish out of the “employees only” bin and quickly wrapped it up, sliding it across the counter to him as she rang up a plain black coffee. 

 

“Charlie…” Sam grumbled as he forked over a dollar. 

 

“Sam…” she deadpanned back.

 

“You're gonna get fired for that one day.” The ginger snorted.

 

“Gabriel would  _ never. _ Not if he wants to keep the only baker he hasn't run off thanks to his attitude before he's had his morning coffee.”

 

“I heard that!” Shouted the man in question- Gabriel Milton, owner and operator of Brewed Awakenings. Sam spotted honey-blonde curls through the swinging doors that lead to the kitchen.

 

“Love you too, short stack!” Charlie yelled back, easily dodging as a wet sponge sailed in her direction. 

 

“So, I'm meeting someone today, a potential roommate.” Sam started between sips of his coffee. The groan that slipped past his lips was involuntary and rather pornographic- Charlie made  _ stellar _ coffee.

 

The redhead grinned up at him. “And you want me to make sure he's not going to shank you in your sleep?”

 

Sam choked on a sip. “Something like that!” He sputtered.

 

“Gotcha covered, hun. Hang out in the back corner, the security cameras are the best there.” The Winchester had to chuckle at her protectiveness- Charlie was like the baby sister he’d never had.  _ Sooo _ much better than Adam's whiny, angst-ridden ass. Sam immediately felt bad about the uncharitable thought- it wasn't Adam's fault that John had gone tomcatting after his wife’s death. The young man shoved those thoughts away and tried to wait patiently.

 

Castiel actually arrived on time, much to his surprise. The traffic here had been a shock, but the driver had known what he was doing. Castiel had tipped him quite heavily. Approaching the counter, Castiel tried to smile through his nerves. 

 

“Hello, I'm supposed to be meeting someone named Sam Winchester here?” The girl at the counter smiled back and pointed towards the back wall. “Thank you.”

 

As he got closer, Sam was impossible to miss. His picture hadn't done him justice- the man was stunningly beautiful and Castiel's heart stuttered a little. Sam looked up from his coffee cup and smiled warmly.

 

“Cas?” The overly familiar nickname made Castiel blink, though if they were going to be living together, familiarity was impossible to avoid.

 

“Hello, Sam.” He stood awkwardly, toying with the handle of his rolling suitcase. Sam made a noise that was likely a concealed snicker.

 

“Sit down, man. I don't bite.” Castiel tried to smile back as he perched on the wooden chair across from Sam. 

 

“So… how was your flight?” Sam nibbled at half a Danish as he spoke, ending up with a couple of crumbs stuck to his stubble. Cas had the irrational urge to lean over and brush them away.

 

“I wouldn't know. I only made it through one chapter of The Once and Future King before I fell asleep. I don't like flying.” 

 

Sam chuckled ruefully. “Yeah I'm not a big fan of it, either. I hitchhiked here to California.” Castiel's eyes went dinner plate wide.

 

“Wasn't that dangerous?” He whispered, rather awestruck.

 

Sam snorted. “Hello, have you seen me? Not many people are stupid enough to fuck with someone who is 6’4”.” Castiel had to concede that point. As subtlely as he could, he tried to catch Sam's scent, but it was beyond muddied up with that of the dozen other patrons, plus everyone who had visited recently. Damn.

 

Charlie came over with a pot of coffee and a bottle of creamer in hand. “Here, get some caffeine in your system before you pass out.” The woman flounced off before either man could respond, and Castiel sputtered indignantly, though he obediently poured himself a cup and downed it black.

 

“Do I look  _ that  _ rough?” 

 

“No offense man, but you look like you could stand a hot shower and about sixteen hours of sleep.” Sam rubbed the back of his neck, flushing slightly.

 

Castiel sighed. “I appreciate your candor. I believe that I have determined you to  _ not  _ be a serial killer in disguise as a puppy wearing plaid, so I am amenable to sharing an apartment if you are.”

 

Sam laughed then, full and hearty with his head thrown back. “I think I'm gonna like you, Cas.” Still chortling, Sam clapped him on the shoulder and stood up, retrieving the suitcase. “Come on, Casa de Broke College Student is about three blocks south of here.”

  
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

Moving Castiel in was alarmingly quick and easy, since he had come from Illinois with exactly one suitcase and a backpack. Sam almost felt bad for him. But then again, Sam was in basically the exact same position, owning little more than a couple of changes of clothes and his toiletries. He had managed to obtain a mattress and nightstand for his new roommate, though he felt terrible about Castiel's bed being on the floor just like his own was. He had also scraped together enough to buy a slightly chipped but serviceable plate, bowl, and mug. The silverware he pocketed from the same Goodwill was a bit tarnished but it would work. That had been the absolute last of his emergency money, and Sam wouldn't get paid until the next Friday. This was going to suck hard.

 

“It's not much, but it's home.” Sam set Castiel's suitcase in what was going to be the other man’s room. In honesty, it had been a laundry room once upon a time, but Sam's cheapskate landlord had removed the machines rather than pay for maintenance on them. The room was barely big enough for the mattress and night stand. 

 

Cas set his backpack down with a relieved sigh. “It will do just fine, Sam.” 

 

“I'm sorry I couldn't afford more, but until I get paid I'm completely strapped.” Sam tugged at his shaggy brown hair and shifted his weight from foot to foot, clearly embarrassed. It tugged at Castiel’s heartstrings and further solidified his conviction that the man was a beta- no Alpha would ever look so shame-faced. Furthermore, even here in his home, Castiel hadn't been able to detect a single trace of the distinct Alpha scent. There was plenty to smell, of course. Sam's home was a comforting mix of cedar and old books, though Castiel hadn't noticed a bookcase. Maybe it was in Sam's bedroom. The blue-eyed man wondered if he could convince his new roommate to bring it out to the living room so Castiel could store a few books on it, too. Despite the extreme spartanness brought on by Sam being a poor college student, this place already felt like it could be home. 

 

Castiel was startled out of his musings by Sam clearing his throat. “So, I'll leave you to get settled. The bathroom is the next door on the right, you already saw the kitchen and what passes for my living room. My room is across the hall, give me a shout if you need anything.” Sam nearly walked straight into the door frame in his haste to escape. 

 

The omega fought the urge to smile- Sam had even made the bed for him. The bedding called to him like a psiren, inviting him to just curl up and let the world fade away for the next ten hours or so, but he resisted it with sheer willpower. Instead, he began unpacking. Without a dresser -which he resolved to get as soon as he was rested- he simply folded his clothes and stacked them neatly against the wall across from his bed. His alarm clock went next to the somewhat bedraggled lamp that Sam had installed on the nightstand, his house slippers were tucked into the cubby underneath. Everything else other than his laptop went into the drawer. Unpacking in under fifteen minutes… this whole ‘fresh start’ thing was going to take some getting used to. His toiletries in hand, Castiel made for the bathroom. The idea of sleeping while covered in the untold grime and germs of a multi-hour plane ride made his skin crawl. No, shower first  _ then  _ sweet unconsciousness.

 

******

 

Sam heard the other man patter down the hallway and start the shower. He sighed heavily, thumping his head backwards against the wall repeatedly, muttering under his breath. Sam had caught a noseful of Castiel’s scent as he gave a brief tour of the cramped apartment. Castiel was an  _ omega.  _ A male omega was all but unheard of, a genetic oddity that cropped up once in a blue moon. That in itself didn't bother him, it was the other man’s scent that had his stomach wound up in knots- sharp, electrifying ozone mixed with ocean spray and wind. It reminded him of the time he and Dean had watched a storm roll in at the beach. They had sat on the edge of a cliff, toes over the ledge and faces into the wind, and watched the lightning strike over and over as the waves got progressively more violent. It was one of his favorite memories, a time when he had truly felt  _ alive,  _ and the scent-memory was doing a serious number on his gut. Sam spared a prayer to whatever Gods might be listening that he wasn't about to be thrown into a Rut; the medical study was about to start and the doctor had made it excruciatingly clear that he wouldn't be allowed to participate if he was about to go through a mating cycle. It was the wrong time of year for Sam, but stranger things had happened and Sam  _ needed  _ the money. Yes, he was thrilled beyond all belief at the thought of being able to pop a pill every day and  _ never _ go through another Rut, but the promised payment for putting his health on the line was also extremely enticing. He just needed to survive until the program started.

 

“Shit-fuck.” Sam snarled, burying his head under his pillow. He was going to need a shower after Cas was done- a  _ cold  _ one. Being Asexual didn't mean that his body was broken; it responded to stimulus regardless of Sam's consent, and right now the omega’s scent was triggering all sorts of unwanted bullshit.

 

“Son of a  _ bitch!” _

 

_ ******** _

 

Castiel was in trouble. The hot shower had been every ounce as relaxing as he had prayed it would be, but now he was stuck. He hadn't thought to find a towel before he had hopped in, nor had he grabbed clean clothes to change into. 

 

“Crap.” Well, there was really only one solution, and it involved the roommate he had lived with for all of two hours. Fan-fucking-tastic.

 

Steeling himself, Castiel cracked the bathroom door open and poked his head out. He cringed at the puddles of water he was dripping everywhere, but it couldn't be helped. He added a bath mat to his mental list of things to get.

 

“Sam?” 

 

There was a moment of silence, then “Yeah, Cas?”

 

“There aren't any clean towels.” 

 

A loud crash sounded from the direction of Sam's bedroom. “Shit! Sorry, hang on!” A few moments later, Sam appeared with a rather threadbare but serviceable towel. Blushing furiously, he passed the towel through the cracked door.

 

“Sorry, man! I'm so used to being the only one here that I completely forgot!” The young man was rubbing his hip absentmindedly as Cas wrapped the towel firmly around his hips. Sam very studiously stared at the rather dingy ceiling.

 

“Are you injured?” Castiel gestured at the joint Sam was favoring, and the taller man’s blush deepened. Castiel found it to be strangely adorable.

 

“I...um… well, I kinda fell over my night stand.”

 

Castiel tried, and failed, to choke down a laugh. “I've changed my mind, you're not a puppy- you're a moose!” Sam stared at him, eyes nearly bugging out of his head, as he processed the joke. Castiel had actually made a  _ joke! _

 

“Well, this moose is going to nurse his wounded pride, if you're done with the shower.” There was a brief moment of dancing side-to-side as they both tried to fit through the doorway at once. They shared a somewhat awkward laugh before finally managing to get where they wanted to be, Sam quickly slamming the door shut and Castiel retreating to his room to hunt up some sweatpants. He fell face first into bed, nestled into the sheets worn wonderfully soft by umpteen washings, and let himself relax. That comforting scent of cedar and old books seemed even stronger and Castiel was soon asleep.

 

**********

 

Castiel didn't sleep for the sixteen hours that Sam had teasingly predicted, but it  _ was  _ late afternoon before he clawed his way back to the world of the living. Truth to be told, he didn't  _ want _ to leave his nest of blankets. He was so warm and comfortable that it wasn't even funny, and he hasn't slept this well in years. It felt a little strange to be able to relax so much around a near stranger, but Castiel wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. 

 

And speaking of mouths - and the stomach attached to it- Castiel was absolutely famished. The airline food had been totally inedible, and he hasn't eaten much at breakfast thanks to the butterflies doing karate in his stomach. His last real meal had been dinner the night before, and his stomach was protesting. Loudly. Mind made up, Castiel threw on a clean pair of jeans and his favorite grey henley and went in search of his new roommate.

 

Sam was curled up on a threadbare bean bag chair. The fabric had probably been black at some point, but it had seen so much use over the years that it was now a faded, washed out and dingy grey color. The poor thing was also nearly flat. Castiel noted that Sam looked absurdly uncomfortable in his contorted position- no person over six feet tall should have to ball up into a pretzel like that. The shorter man cleared his throat to announce his presence.

 

When Castiel coughed pointedly, Sam nearly jumped out of his skin- he gave a rather unmanly squeak and almost threw his laptop across the room at his perceived intruder. 

 

“Jesus Christ, Cas! I’m going to hang a bell on you!” The man yelped, clutching at his heart as though it were about to beat out of his chest. 

 

Castiel chuckled. “My apologies. I am aware that it isn’t exactly breakfast time, but I was wondering if you would like me to make pancakes? They’re a comfort food for me.” Sam’s face immediately fell.

 

“Fuck, I wish but I’m all but out of food. I’ve got enough to hold us until I get paid, but it’s going to be stupidly tight. Sorry.” Sam seemed to curl inwards on himself even more and Castiel’s heart broke for his new friend. He really was in a tight spot, that explained why he had been searching for a roommate in the first place.

 

“Is there a Walmart or something within walking distance?” Castiel was already lacing his shoes. When he looked up, Sam was staring at him as though he had sprouted horns.

 

“Uh...Yeah, there’s one about half a mile away. Why?” 

 

“Because we’re going there. We need food, and a bath mat, and extra towels, and a few dozen other things.” Sam continued to gape at him, dumbstruck. “Come on, already.” 

 

“Cas, I can’t ask you to do that-”

 

“Are we roommates, or not?”

 

Sam huffed. “Yeah, but…”

 

“No ‘buts’, we’re going. I will pull my weight the same as you, and as I see it, you already furnished a lot of the apartment. I have some catching up to do.” He reached for the doorknob, determined to go with or without Sam. 

 

“But-”

 

“Come on, or I’m going without you and you don’t get to argue when I come home with bee themed bathroom decor.” Sam scrambled to his feet and lunged for his boots. Castiel noted that they were in desperate need of replacing. Well, with two incomes  _ and _ the money from the drug trial -which he had  _ no _ intentions of telling Sam about- hopefully Sam would spoil himself with a new pair soon. If not, Castiel was not above noting the size and buying them anyways. He was absolutely determined to make the best of this fresh start, even if it meant blatantly bribing his way into a proper friendship with Sam. 

 

_ “I really lucked out with Sam- a soft spoken, humble, hard-working beta? What more could I ask out of a roommate?” _

 

Nearly three hours later, the pair struggled up the three flights of stairs that led to Sam’s- no,  _ their _ \- apartment. By the time Castiel had deemed their shopping cart ‘full enough’, there had been enough groceries, miscellaneous household items, and at least one plush bumblebee that they had resorted to getting a cab to take it all home. Sam had protested heavily, but Castiel cut him off by lobbing a wadded up Walmart bag at his head. 

 

“Fine, put it on my tab if you’re going to be such an assbutt about it.” Castiel turned away to put some canned goods in the cupboard, and Sam took the opportunity to flex his Little Brother muscles and stick his tongue out at the other man.

 

“Very mature. Remind me to glue moose antlers to your head when you’re asleep.” 

 

Sam mock-glared at the omega. “What, do you have eyes in the back of your head? Or are you just psychic?”

 

“I can see your reflection off the window.” Castiel waved in the direction of the somewhat grubby kitchen window. Sam winced and immediately grabbed the new bottle of windex and and some paper towels. He didn’t  _ like _ his apartment being messy or grimy, he just hadn’t been able to afford cleaning supplies recently and water on a rag only went so far. 

 

The pair worked in silence for a while, Castiel stowing groceries and Sam tidying up. By the time the Winchester had moved on to scrubbing the counter tops with some sanitizing wipes, his stomach was rumbling its displeasure. From across the room, he heard his roommate’s stomach echo the sentiment. Sam snorted, Castiel choked on an embarrassed chuckle, and before long the unlikely pair found themselves leaning on the freshly cleaned counters and laughing until they couldn’t breathe.

 

Sam swiped at the extra moisture on his cheeks. “Oh, man… I think I was promised some pancakes for dinner?” 

 

“Promised? I don’t recall promising anything.” The stern look on Castiel’s face was ruined by the twitching at the corner of his mouth. 

 

Sam grinned and and cranked what Dean had always called his ‘puppy eyes’ up to eleven. “What if I ask nicely?” He even batted his eyelashes and stuck out his bottom lip for extra effect as he waited.

 

Castiel snorted. “Is this going to be some sort of ‘If You Give a Mouse a Cookie’ thing? If I give a Moose a pancake…” 

 

“Alright, enough with the moose jokes!” Sam laughed in spite of himself.

 

“Never. You’re stuck with me, get used to it.” Castiel was pulling ingredients back out of the cupboard. He discovered the single skillet Sam owned and plunked it down on the range as he got to work. That wonderful cedar-and-books scent was back, with undertones of something spicy and his hands stuttered when he realized that it was  _ Sam’s _ scent. Immediately, Castiel felt foolish- it was a somewhat odd scent for a beta (betas tended to have muted, mild scents) but Sam was also rather taller than the average beta, too. It wasn’t an unpleasant scent by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, it was quite soothing. It was all over the blanket and pillow Sam had given him, meaning that the other man had surrendered some of his own bedding rather than risk his new roommate be uncomfortable. That was the nail in the coffin, as it were. Sam’s nurturing, quiet, and kind demeanor was the hallmark of a beta. 

 

Castiel swallowed a sigh of relief at his verdict and returned to mixing up some pancake batter from scratch. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh... Castiel's making assumptions. You know what they say about those.


	4. Chapter 4

And thus went their lives for their first two weeks. Sam picked up as many shifts at the bar as he could, begging his way into the day shift rotation as a dishwasher in addition to his bartending several nights a week, and Castiel began his new job at a local library. Neither job paid much, but between them they were able to restock the pantry and even spring for a futon. Sam abjectly refused to surrender his flattened bean bag chair. In fact, when Castiel had gently suggested that it be added to the weekly trash pick up, Sam had nearly burst into tears. Strangely sentimental piles of cloth and foam balls aside, the pair actually got along extremely well. And in Sam Winchester’s life, where Murphy’s Law ruled, this would be exactly where he started looking for the other shoe to drop.

 

The trouble would come early one Monday morning, when both men made their excuses and left the apartment abnormally early- Sam claiming that he had a coffee date, Castiel muttering something about checking out a used car that was for sale nearby. In reality they were both heading for the same medical clinic, blissfully unaware of the other’s presence. So when Castiel walked into the waiting room and ensconced himself in a corner with a clipboard and a mountain of paperwork for the trial, he didn’t even notice Sam entering the room ten minutes later. Likewise, Sam was focused on trying to look small and inconspicuous as he checked in with the secretary at the window. He took a seat by the window and buried himself in forms. The Winchester was so absorbed in his paperwork that he didn’t notice the familiar scent of his roommate, nor did he recognize when it went sour with recognition and terror. So involved was he with the stack of paper on his clipboard that he even missed the call of  _ ‘Novak, Castiel’ _ and the raven-haired man bolting towards the mildly alarmed nurse. 

 

Sam was called a few minutes later. The doctor was an older, portly man by the Doctor Milligan, kind and with hair that had once been black but was now shot through with grey. His sharp blue eyes seemed to miss nothing as he grilled Sam about his medical history and sexual orientation. After careful consideration, Doctor Milligan allowed Sam to participate in the trial even though his asexual status could potentially affect the result.

 

“Theoretically, the suppressants should stop your Ruts just the same as any Alpha, but I will be extremely interested to see what, if any, affect your orientation has.” The doctor handed over an amber vial with thirty green oblong pills in it and a standard composition notebook. “You will take one of these daily, with food. Remember to take them at the same time every day, and keep a log of any and all symptoms you notice. It doesn’t matter how small or insignificant, write it down. And if you need  _ anything _ or have any concerns, please call me. You will receive a weekly stipend for your participation and to cover travel costs.”

 

With his new meds in hand, Sam caught a cab back to his apartment. The young man was practically vibrating with excitement. He hurriedly downed his first dose grabbed one of the salads he’d premade and stashed in the fridge for himself. With his rabbit food in hand, Sam sprawled out on the futon and grabbed his laptop. He had intended to peruse Craigslist for a dresser for Castiel’s room, but somehow ended up on Youtube watching cat videos. About an hour later, he was startled out of his near-napping state by the front door slamming shut and a Castiel-shaped blur darting past. Before Sam could even process what was going on, Castiel had vanished into his bedroom (slamming another door in the process), leaving only a fear-drenched parody of the omega’s ozone scent in his wake.

 

“Cas?” Sam blanched at the absolute terror laced through the omega’s scent. He carefully set his laptop aside and followed the sound of frantic movement to Castiel’s room. Hesitantly, he rapped his knuckles against the thin door. He heard a muffled yelp and even more movement.

 

“Go away!” Castiel hissed, leaving Sam shocked by the venom in his voice.

 

“Cas, what’s going on?” Sam’s head was spinning from the miraid of negative emotions he could scent even through the door. It was setting his teeth on edge, telling the Alpha that he needed to be on high alert, ready to destroy whatever had frightened the omega so badly. 

 

The rancid ozone smell ratcheted up another notch and Sam’s stomach rolled a bit. “Get away from me!” The threat of tears in Castiel’s voice, combined with the bizarre behavior and horrible scent, had the Alpha completely freaked out.

 

He tried one more time, leaning against the doorframe and lowering his voice, trying to soothe the terror-stricken man on the other side of the door. “Cas, you’re freaking me out here. Whatever it is, tell me what’s wrong and I’ll help fix it.”

 

Castiel barked a hysterical-sounding laugh and continued with whatever frenzied activity was going on in his room. “You can’t fix it,  _ Alpha! You’re _ the problem!!” The disgust in the omega’s voice cut through Sam like a knife.

 

“What?! I’ve done  _ nothing _ but be kind to you! How could I possibly be the problem, here?”

 

The raven-haired man snorted derisively. “You Alphas, you’re all the same. You lured me in with promises of safety and a home, of a  _ friend, _ but all you want is a hole to knot! Well, I won’t fucking let you! I’ll die before I let another Alpha force himself on me!” Castiel’s voice rose in pitch until he was screaming. The silence after his rant was deafening, and only broken by the sound of a fist slamming into the wall. 

 

Sam’s face went green. “You were… oh, God…” His stomach pitched again and Sam bolted for the bathroom, barely making it in time before his guts revolted and what felt like everything he had ever eaten in his whole life made a violent reappearance. Sam coughed and choked, slamming down to his knees when his legs completely gave out on him. 

 

A firm, calloused hand closed over his forehead and Sam jerked in surprise, unable to look up as another wave of dry heaves wracked him. Castiel’s scent was still tinged with that burnt ozone and rotting seaweed, but there was a note of concern to it now, a hair of omega sweetness trying to balance it out. Sam spit into the toilet, trying to clear the taste out of his mouth, and gratefully accepted the cup of water that appeared in front of his nose.

 

“I’ve got to say, I don’t think anyone has ever reacted so violently to finding out about my past.” Dry humor seemed to be a defense mechanism for the omega. He closed the lid and flushed the toilet, helping Sam to his feet. Sam cringed when he realized that there was vomit in his bedraggled hair. 

 

“Who…?” Sam couldn’t even choke out the rest of the sentence as bile threatened to choke him again. Castiel heaved a sigh and scrubbed at his stubbled cheeks.

 

“My father.” Sam’s face went ashen and he swallowed convulsively. Castiel tracked the motion, a somewhat confused expression taking over his almost blank face. “You react very strongly to the notion.” It wasn’t a question.

 

Sam groaned and nodded as he turned to start the shower. He was drenched in sweat and there were chunks in his hair and down his shirt. For the first time since he had torn into the apartment, hellbent on packing his shit and escaping the Alpha, Castiel took the time to scent Sam. Of course, the first thing he smelled was sick. But under that was Sam’s normal scent, tainted by disgust and horror- rotting books and a forest fire. The Alpha was legitimately revolted by Castiel’s revelation. He hadn’t expected anything of the sort. Granted, he had hoped that this wouldn’t have been an issue in the first place- he had wanted to do a smash and grab for his stuff and then probably ghost Sam until the Alpha gave up. Instead, he found himself trying to comfort the stricken man. What even was his life?

 

The omega was startled out of his musings by Sam clearing his throat pointedly. “Um… so I think I desperately need a shower… and then, we need to talk.” Castiel flinched, but nodded. “Look, just promise me that you’ll still be here when I’m not covered in my own puke?”

 

Despite himself, Castiel chuckled. Sam really did make a sorry sight right now. It was hard to remember why he’d been so frightened of the Alpha when he looked so small and miserable. “I promise, Sam.” He ducked out of the bathroom so Sam could clean himself up, fighting against the bone-deep urge to burst back in and help Sam wash his hair or something.  _ Why _ did the Alpha make him feel like this? Oh, right. Sam had taken him into his home, given him a place to live, surrendered his own bedding so that Castiel would be comfortable, fed him, made him laugh… Not once had he made any attempt to be anything more than the omega’s friend. There hadn’t been a single hint at the Alpha wanting anything else. He had been kind, and sweet… so much so that Castiel had taken him for a beta for two weeks straight. The omega sighed and rounded the corner into Sam’s bedroom. Before he could second-guess himself or think too hard about what he was doing, he retrieved a pair of sweatpants, Sam’s favorite Stanford hoodie, and the fuzziest socks the Alpha seemed to own. 

 

When he heard the water shut off, Castiel knocked on the bathroom door. Steam billowed out into the omega’s face when Sam cracked the door open. “Here… I brought you some clothes.” A small, grateful smile tugged at the corners of Sam’s mouth as he accepted Castiel’s peace offering for what it was. 

 

“Thanks, Cas.” The Alpha vanished, reappearing a few moments later. Sam was still toweling his hair dry, and Castiel thought it might be the cutest thing he’d ever seen. 

 

“So…” Sam shifted awkwardly from foot to foot as he tried to find the words.

 

“So.” Castiel deadpanned at him.

 

The Winchester led the way to their living room and curled himself into a ball on the futon, obviously trying to make himself as small and nonthreatening as he could. “Where do we start?”

 

“I guess at the beginning. I was sixteen when my life went to hell…”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Sam was staring at his roommate, slackjawed, as the man finished recounting his bitter tale. 

 

“Holy fuck, Cas.” 

 

Castiel gave a humorless snort of laughter. “Yeah, that about sums it up. I joined the medical study because being a male omega is awful to begin with, and with my history, I’d sell my left nut to avoid ever having a heat again. So, what about you? What’s a big, strapping Alpha like you doing in a study to suppress hormones?” 

 

Sam groaned softly. “To make a long story short, I’m asexual. The very concept of knotting someone makes my stomach queasy.”

 

“That explains the whole…” Castiel waved vaguely.

 

“Yeah. You should have seen how badly I reacted to walking in on three Alpha roommates knot deep in a bunch of omegas last year.” Sam’s face was still a shade that made Castiel a bit worried about their upholstery. 

 

“That does sound disgusting.” The omega rubbed at his scruffy cheeks. “A traumatized, sex-phobic male omega and an asexual Alpha sharing a poor college student apartment. We sound like a bad sitcom.” The pair shared a laugh at the absurdity of their situation. With a soft sigh, Castiel retrieved a pair of beers from the fridge. He cracked them both open and passed one to a very grateful Sam, who extended it with a rather sardonic smile.

 

“Fuck hormones.”

 

Castiel snorted. “I’ll drink to that.”


	5. Chapter 5

With the truth about their secondary genders and emotional troubles out in the open, life became simultaneously easier and more awkward. Sam seemed to be going out of his way to make himself as non-threatening as possible- he was careful to never accidentally sneak up on the omega, tried to avoid backing him into a corner or making him feel caged in with the Alpha’s greater physical stature, and held himself so that he seemed smaller. Castiel was simultaneously appreciative and mildly irritated. After almost a week of Sam pulling the  _ ‘I swear I’m not going to attack you’ _ routine, Castiel snapped.

 

“Enough already!” Castiel threw a pillow at the other man, striking him squarely in the forehead. Sam shrank a bit deeper into his corner of the futon, though this time he seemed to be trying to protect his laptop from any subsequent airborne missiles. 

 

“Uh…. wha’?” 

 

“You’re creeping around here like you expect me to break out a rape whistle if you breathe too hard in my general direction! Knock it off!” Castiel readied another pillow. 

 

Sam hid under the pillow he was holding, preparing to be attacked. “I just didn’t want to frighten you!” 

 

Castiel flung the his missile with a derisive snort. “You eat nothing but salads, cry over any movie where the dog dies, and keep your childhood teddy bear hidden in your sock drawer. Forgive me for not shaking in my boots.” 

 

“You leave Bobby out of this!” Sam chucked the pillow back at his roommate, striking him in the chest. Castiel barked a laugh.

 

“Oh, it’s  _ on, _ Winchester!” The omega lunged across the living room, throw pillow raised over his head threateningly, and whapped Sam over the head. Sam cackled and returned fire and the pair devolved into a pillow fight more worthy of a middle school sleepover than a pair of grown men heading into their twenties. One torn pillow and a metric ton of fluff later, Sam was sprawled out on his back with Castiel sitting on his chest, the only remaining pillow raised triumphantly.

 

“Say uncle!” The omega crowed.

 

“Never!” Sam spat, grinning. Castiel brought the pillow down and smooshed it over Sam’s face as though he were trying to smother the Alpha. Sam gave a muffled yelp and thrashed around, trying to toss the other man off, but Castiel was a solid mass of muscle and had better leverage. Finally, the Alpha slapped his hand on the floor several times to signal his surrender. The pillow was removed and Sam sucked in a desperate lungful of air. 

 

“Let me up, you lump! Holy shit, do you eat bricks for breakfast or something?” Sam shoved at the omega playfully. Castiel stuck his tongue out but obeyed, letting the Alpha get to his feet. The younger man was grinning smugly.

 

“See? I don’t have to be scared of you!” There was something like pride in his voice as he poked Sam firmly in the chest. Sam chuckled, enjoying how Castiel’s scent took on notes of joy and confidence that were reflected in the way his eyes danced. It was a good look on him and it warmed Sam’s heart in response. Halfway to the kitchen, Castiel froze as he caught the answering approval in Sam’s scent. He turned away quickly to hide the blush tinging his cheeks. 

 

“What do you want for dinner? And if you say ‘salad’, I may put nair in your shampoo!” Sam chuckled and retrieved his laptop from where he had hidden it under the futon.

 

“Pizza sound good to you?” 

 

~~~~~~~~~

 

A little past the one-week marker for the medical trial, Castiel started exhibiting side effects. They were subtle at first- he became rather irritable and cranky. His temper flared at silly little things. The third time he smashed his knee into the coffee table caused him to rage-clean and reorganize the entirety of their shared living space, including deep cleaning the bathroom. Sam decided to hide in his room, making no noise and pretending not to exist, until the omega’s scent returned to something approaching normal. 

 

Then, there was the appetite changes. Neither man was exactly small and both could put away a good amount of food, when but Castiel’s appetite started to outstrip Sam’s, the Alpha started to worry a bit. His only attempt at bringing it up resulted in him running in terror, an Omega wielding a spatula in hot pursuit.

 

But most noticeable of all was the change in Castiel’s scent. Sam wasn’t sure how to describe it, Cas just smelled...more. More like ozone and ocean spray, more like warmth and home, more omega. One Saturday morning, it all clicked into place when he found Castiel curled up into a ball on the futon, clutching his stomach and whimpering.

 

“Oh, hell…” Sam hissed when he was smacked in the face by the full-blown scent of an omega in heat. He gritted his teeth against the first, reflexive surge of Alpha hormones and then the nausea that always followed. He stopped in the door frame so as to not frighten the omega.

 

“Cas?” The Alpha called softly. Castiel’s eyes snapped up and there was a flicker of fear in those crystalline depths before recognition kicked in and his whole body sagged in relief. 

 

“Hey, Sam…” Huh. Given his rant about how he’d rather cut off his balls than go through a heat, that wasn’t the reaction Sam had been expecting. He’d been bracing himself for screaming, or for the omega to try to bolt out the door. 

 

With the risk of his roommate panicking seeming to be a non-issue, Sam slowly approached. He kept his hands at his sides and his shoulders slumped, carefully being as docile and calming as he could. Rather than join Castiel on the futon, he sat crosslegged on the beanbag chair/pancake, deliberately putting himself lower than the other man. Being a pre-law student, a few behavioral classes had taught him how to defuse a situation via body language and he was shamelessly employing that now.

 

“So, you feeling ok?” The Winchester asked mildly, as though he didn’t have heat-scent burning a hole in the back of his throat. 

 

Cas snorted. “Depends on your definition of ‘ok’. I’m not dying, at least.” The omega’s sardonic, self-deprecating smirk rubbed Sam the wrong way. 

 

“Is this normal for you?” 

 

The omega’s eyes narrowed and his posture changed again, curling inwards a bit as though he were in pain. “I’m not sure I follow.”

 

“Your heats. Is this normal for you?” Sam’s cheeks flushed a bit. It  _ was _ a really private topic, akin to asking an Alpha how big his knot got.

 

“Heat? Huh? I’m not in heat!” Castiel spat. He started to get up, only to end up curled back up in a ball on the futon. 

 

Sam’s eyes went dinner plate wide as all the pieces clicked into place. “Dude, you reek of heat-scent! I could smell it from the hallway! And you’re acting just like my cousin Jo does- moody, irritable, eating everything in sight, and you’re obviously in pain.” 

 

“But...but… I’m not…” The younger man buried his face in his palms in embarrassment, the rest of whatever he had been going to say lost in a mumble. 

 

“Not what, Cas?” 

 

“There’s no sl-slick.” Castiel choked out around his fingers. “And I’m not desperate for an Alpha.” Yup, this conversation had officially reached critical embarrassment levels and Sam was noping out of it. 

 

“I’m calling Doctor Milligan.” The Alpha darted out of the room as fast as his feet could carry him, already searching for the doctor’s phone number in his contacts list. The nurse that answered was happy to page him and Sam was put on hold, listening to obnoxious elevator music, while he waited.

 

_ “Mister Winchester! What can I do for you today?” _

 

Sam heaved a sigh of relief. “Hey, Doc. I’m calling about my roommate, Castiel. He’s a part of your study, too.”

 

There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end of the line.  _ “I was unaware that you two were living together. Has something happened?” _ The doctor’s tone told Sam that he was well aware of the male omega’s traumatic history and was bracing himself for the absolute worst possibility. Sam’s stomach turned a bit.

 

“Sort of. He’s exhibiting some major signs of being in heat- increased appetite, irritability, abdominal pain, scent… but he says he doesn’t feel like he’s in heat. No… no slick or… increased libido.” Sam was absolutely certain that his cheeks were never, ever,  _ ever _ going to be any color other than flaming red ever again.

 

_ “Hmm… That sounds like false heat. A few of the other omega participants have reported similar symptoms. We are hoping that it’s a sign that the suppressants are taking effect, a mild cycle before the complete cessation of heats.”  _

 

“Should I try to bring him in?” Concern for the omega was forming a tight knot in his chest. 

 

_ “No, I don’t think that’s necessary. But I appreciate you taking the time to call.” _

 

Sam sighed in relief. If Doctor Milligan wasn’t worried, then the Alpha could stand down. “So what should I do for him?”

 

_ “Just make him comfortable. Have you ever dealt with an omega in heat before?” _

 

“Just my cousin, Jo.” That wasn’t a very fond memory, but at least he hadn’t responded to her hormones. Generally, the blood family of an omega in heat or an Alpha in rut wouldn’t be affected. Sam flinched- obviously, there were exceptions.

 

_ “And do you feel any response to this?”  _ Doctor Milligan’s voice was carefully modulated, as though he were trying to soften what he was implying. 

 

The Alpha groaned. “Fuck, no. The second I smelled it, I almost vomited.”

 

_ “So, your normal reaction to Rut or heat scent.”  _ Sam made an affirmative noise.  _ “Then just care for him as you did Jo. Offer him a heating pad, Ibuprofen, and anything that he will eat. Keep him hydrated. Call me if  _ anything _ changes, especially if he starts exhibiting stronger symptoms.”  _

 

“Thanks, Doc. I will.”

 

_ “Have a good day, Mr. Winchester.”  _ The line clicked and went dead, and Sam gave a relieved huff. He took a moment to gather himself before returning to the living room, where he found Castiel exactly as he had left him. The omega looked fairly miserable and it broke Sam’s heart.

 

“Doctor Milligan says it’s probably a ‘false heat’, whatever that means. Something to do with the suppressants starting to work and setting off a mild cycle before stopping them altogether.” The omega looked both relieved and alarmed. He groaned through clenched teeth as another round of painful spasms wracked him. 

 

“Can I… can I get you anything?” Good sweet God, this was awkward as fuck, but Sam was determined to push through it. Short of dragging Castiel to the clinic, he was the only help the omega would be able to get. The idea of just leaving him to deal with it all alone set off every protective instinct the Alpha had burned into his very DNA. 

 

Castiel hummed softly. “I’d kill for a heating pad.” 

 

“I don’t have one on hand, but there’s a pharmacy right down the road. How about I get you into a hot bath, and then I’ll run down and get you one?” Sam still made no attempt to touch his roommate for fear of setting off the nasty PTSD he had glimpsed a week prior. Castiel whimpered softly.

 

“Would you? Oh fuck, I feel so pathetic right now.” The omega looked downright miserable.

 

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I can’t imagine how much pain you’re in. Whatever I can do to help, you just tell me and I’ll do everything I can to make it happen.” Sam got up slowly and moved to stand by his friend, close enough that Castiel could use him for a handhold to get to his feet if he wanted to but not close enough to be threatening. The omega smiled weakly and reached towards him, and Sam instantly clasped his hand and helped him up. Castiel staggered.

 

“Come on, into the tub with you.” With one hand around the omega’s waist and the other holding onto the arm Castiel flung around the Alpha’s shoulder, they slowly made their way to the bathroom. Sam only let go when he was sure that the omega wasn’t going to fall over. He quickly started the water, thinking a quick prayer in the direction of any deity that might be in control of hot water, and dug out his secret stash of bath salts. He flushed a bit pink as he dumped several handfuls of the lavender scented salt under the running water.

 

“You tell anybody I have this and I’ll never buy you chocolate again.” 

 

Castiel managed a weak chuckle. “Perish the thought.” 

 

Once the water threatened to overflow the tub, Sam shut it off. He shifted awkwardly from foot to foot, debating on how to phrase his next question. “Do you need help?” 

 

“I think I can handle getting into the tub by myself. I  _ am _ a grown man, Sam.” There was a hint of the omega’s usually dry humor was peeking through the pained scrunch of his face and Sam smiled encouragingly.

 

“Alright, I’m heading out. Don’t drown.” Castiel flapped a hand at him lazily as Sam beats a hasty retreat.

 

His jog to the pharmacy gives Sam time to make a mental list of things he wants to buy for his uncomfortable roommate. Thankfully, both of them had gotten their stipends for the study so they were pretty set for cash. He slowed to a walk just outside the old, wooden-sided building. Sam wasn’t a big fan of huge chain stores, preferring to shop locally whenever he could, and this family-run pharmacy was no exception. He retrieved a basket on his way in, heading straight for the isle marked ‘feminine care’. 

 

It rankled the Alpha just a little that people like Castiel were basically invisible to society, but male omegas and female alphas were extremely rare. Most people wouldn’t encounter a single one in their lifetime, so Sam stowed the irritation and started shopping. He picked up some chemical heating pads as well as one that was the old-fashioned, outlet powered variety. After a moment of hesitation, he grabbed a box of sanitary pads too. Castiel had said that slick wasn’t an issue, but it paid to be prepared for any eventuality. Next was painkillers- not knowing Castiel’s preference, he grabbed a fresh bottle of ibuprofen and one of tylenol. His last stop was the freezer full of ice cream, where he found a container of Chocolate Moose Tracks. If nothing else, it might make the omega laugh at him. On impulse, he also picked up a box of raspberry tea bags. Jo had sworn by them, so maybe it was worth a shot?

 

Grinning to himself, he went to pay. The cashier was an elderly lady with laugh lines and crow's feet that crinkled when he approached. She rang up his items with a soft smile.

 

“That’ll be $28.99, son. Your girl’s lucky to have someone like you to take care of her.” Sam flushed at the implication that Castiel was  _ his _ omega, stammering his thanks as he forked over his debit card. He fled the building as fast as he could without leaving a smoke trail behind. At least his persistently red cheeks could be explained away by him running all the way back to the apartment.

 

“Hey, Cas?” Sam called as he locked the door behind him.

 

“I didn’t drown, I promise. Though if it gets me out of pain, I might consider it.” Came the somewhat cranky response, and Sam chuckled. He stowed the ice cream in the freezer and took the rest of the bag to Castiel’s room, intent on putting them on the omega’s bed -which was now off the floor and on a bed frame with very convenient drawers under it-, but the scent drew him up short. Without being rude, it was hard to describe the omega’s bedding. Sam could certainly pick up heat-scent and his normal ozone-and-ocean, but there was also stale sweat. Cas must have spent most of last night in a sweaty fever, which was another heat symptom. Sam winced in sympathy and put the purchases on the floor. He stripped Castiel’s sheets and blankets off, bundling them into the man’s hamper. The dirty hamper went out by the front door, and Sam fully intended to lug it down the hallway to the communal laundry room once Castiel was comfortable. 

 

That done, Sam retrieved his own spare sheets and one of his blankets. The blanket had been slept in, but it was a damned sight better than Castiel’s soiled one. He remade the omega’s bed, even going as far as to fluff the pillow, before putting the supplies he had purchased on the blanket and returning to the kitchen. He put a pot of water on to boil and retrieved a tea bag and the only mug he owned that wasn’t chipped. While the water was boiling, he dished out a bowl of ice cream. By the time he was done, the water was boiling so he dumped it into the mug and added a tea bag. He could hear Castiel rustling about and the water draining. Perfect timing!

 

“Cas, you decent?” He tapped the omega’s door with his toe as his hands were full. The door creaked open and Sam was met with a damp, shirtless, clearly embarrassed roommate. The brunet could see the top edge of a white heating pad stuck to washboard abs and quickly snapped his eyes up to face level. 

 

“You didn’t have to do all this… ohmygawd is that chocolate?!” The bowl was snatched from Sam’s hands so fast that the omega seemed to blur. Sam threw his head back and laughed.

 

“Yeah, and I brought you tea, too. I can’t swear that it’s going to help, but my cousin Jo said that raspberry is some sort of magical anti-cramp thing. But she also thinks that lines of salt will keep evil out of your house, so…” Castiel eyed the mug dubiously but accepted it, taking a small sip. He sighed approvingly.

 

“Well, it tastes wonderful at least. Sam, I… thank you. You really didn’t have to do this.”

 

Sam smiled indulgently. “No, but I wanted to. We’re friends, right? Friends have each other’s backs.” Their eyes locked and there was a moment where Sam’s Alpha instincts to protect and care for the omega roared in his blood. Castiel’s eyes went wide and Sam knew that he had smelled it, but the other man didn’t appear frightened. If anything, he seemed...embarrassed? Pleased? Somewhere in the middle? The Alpha wasn’t sure but it made his blood sing. 

 

“I think I’m going to try to take a nap. Thank you for everything, Sam.” 

 

The Winchester knew he was gently being dismissed. “You need me to tuck you in?” He teased, hand already halfway out of the door. 

 

Castiel actually managed to laugh despite his discomfort. “No, but will you check for monsters under my bed? Since you seem to think that I’m a delicate little flower of an omega, that is.” 

 

Sam clutched a hand to his chest as though mortally wounded. “Cas, you’re breaking my heart, here! If I can’t take care of you, what purpose do I have in life?” Castiel shut the door in his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so I clearly have a kink for nurturing!Sam. He's a 6'4" teddybear and nobody can tell me otherwise.


	6. Chapter 6

By the time the first day of the semester rolled around the following Monday, Castiel was back to normal. Or what passed for normal for a traumatized male omega, at least. Sam voiced his concern about Castiel attending class, but was brushed off by his blushing roommate.

 

“Look, Sam. I appreciate the concern. I really, really do. But this ‘false heat’ lasted half as long as my cycles usually do. I feel  _ fine. _ You said it yourself- I smell normal again. And besides I can’t miss the first day of class!” The omega spoke around mouthfuls of pancakes, reminding Sam very strongly of his own older brother. Dean Winchester was many things. Polite at the table was not one of them. A rueful grin tugged at the corners of the Alpha’s lips and he held his hands up in surrender. The omega was practically vibrating with enthusiasm over his first day at Stanford, and Sam found himself being drawn into it almost against his will.

 

“Alright, alright! I’ve never seen somebody so worked up over the first day! It’s gonna be nothing but a bunch of BS anyways- freshmen professors just go over class rules and the syllabus the first day. Chill out!” The Winchester conveniently forgot to mention that he’d been so wound up about  _ his _ first day that his roommate had threatened to sedate him. 

 

Castiel made a rude gesture around his coffee cup before clearing his throat. “I don’t  _ care, _ Samuel!” Sam’s token protest of  _ ‘it’s SAM’ _ went completely ignored. “I’m going to be a doctor! I’m going to be able to help fix people like me!” 

 

Sam winced. Privately, he thought Castiel was perfect exactly as he was -anxiety and whacky hormones, and all- but he knew that wasn’t what the omega wanted to hear. So instead of voicing his protests, he clapped a hand on his friend’s shoulder as he made his way to the sink.

 

“You’re gonna be amazing, Cas.” Sam proclaimed earnestly. The omega blinked owlishly, his mouth soundlessly opening and closing a few times, before he busied himself with adding even more creamer to his already pale coffee. The slightly sweet odor of an embarrassed yet pleased omega reached Sam’s sensitive nose. He smiled to himself and went back to washing his dirty dishes. 

 

Since neither of them had been able to afford to purchase a car yet -though Castiel was eyeballing a 1978 Lincoln Continental that was for sale nearby- they decided to walk to campus together. Sam’s classes were on the other side of the campus, and not all of their classes and break times lined up, but the Alpha had put his foot down about Castiel being entirely on his own. “It’s just until you get your bearings and are used to everybody.” He placated, and Castiel was privately rather relieved that the other man seemed to take his safety and comfort so seriously. The thought of having to be around so many strange Alphas was daunting.

 

Sam saw him all the way to the door of his first class, the subject matter of which amounted to “Here’s how to study, please don’t drink yourself into alcohol poisoning, and for God’s sake use a condom”. The Alpha rolled his eyes and informed him that  _ all  _ freshmen had to attend this class and most promptly ignored it. Castiel made a face and shooed him away. As he was selecting a seat towards the back of the lecture hall, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

 

_ Sam: Play nice with the other kids, Cas! _

 

Castiel rolled his eyes and quickly typed out a reply.  _ Yes, mother. _

 

Sam replied with a long string of emojis with their tongues stuck out, but before Castiel could send him more snark, the professor cleared his throat loudly to get their attention, and the omega quickly stashed his phone in his backpack. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~

 

By the time Sam’s last class ended, he was all but vibrating out of his skin. Yes, Cas had texted him several times throughout the day to check in and reassure the increasingly concerned Alpha that he was doing ok, but Sam just couldn’t help but be worried about his friend. 

 

_ Yeah,  _ friend. _ That’s why you’re being such a mother hen. _ Some nasty little voice in the back of his head pointed out. The voice sounded suspiciously like his older brother. Sam snorted.

 

_ He’s a traumatized omega with anxiety out the wazoo and it’s his first day at college. Of course I’m worried about him. _

 

_ Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. And while you’re in fantasy land, I’d like a pony.  _

 

_ Shut it, brain. _

 

_ Hey, you’re the one sitting here and having an argument with yourself. Are you sure  _ Cas _ is the one with mental issues?  _ Sam had no response for that. Thankfully, the omega in question chose that moment to make an appearance. Sam could scent him before he could actually see the younger man through the groups of students milling around the quad, and what he could smell made his heart sing. The blinding smile Cas gave him echoed the omega’s joy and pride in himself.

 

“I survived my first day of classes without a single freak out!” Castiel beamed, and Sam couldn’t help but return the sunny grin.

 

“Proud of you, Cas. What do ya say we blow this popsicle stand? Celebratory breakfast-for-dinner at IHOP, my treat?” Sam’s hands stuttered on the zipper of his backpack as he realized that he had just practically asked his roommate on a date. Thankfully, if Castiel noticed the shift in Sam’s scent, he didn’t comment on it. 

 

“Only if I can have that nutella and banana crepe thing I saw advertised last week.” The omega was still smiling to himself as he watched Sam shoulder his bag.

 

“Deal.” 

 

~~~~~~~~

 

Things went smoothly for the first few weeks of classes. Doctor Milligan called both Sam and Castiel in for blood work and to review their symptom logs. Due to patient confidentiality issues, they couldn’t be seen at the same time, but Sam was happy to hang out in the waiting room while Castiel finished up. They were both given new medications- a refill for Sam and an increased dose for Cas- and sent on their way again. Not forty-eight hours after Castiel took the first of his stronger dose of suppressants, the trouble started again. 

 

Now that he knew what Castiel’s heat-scent was, he picked it up long before the omega realized what was happening. Sam was pretty sure that he reached a whole new, previously undiscovered shade of red as he tried to warn his friend about what was coming. Castiel side-eyed him, unconvinced that Sam’s nose was sensitive enough to detect an oncoming heat before the omega did, but within twelve hours it hit him full-force and Castiel was once again curled up on the futon, biting through his lip in an attempt to stop himself from whimpering pathetically. Sam winced in sympathy and dug out the electric heating pad for his suffering roommate while the omega emailed his professors- with two thirds of the population subject to the biological imperatives of heat and rut, most schools made provisions for stricken students to be able to view lectures via webcam.

 

_ Fuck, he smells good. _ Sam nearly tripped over his own feet at the thought as he made his way to the kitchen.

 

_ The hell? No he doesn’t! The heat-scent is making my stomach churn! _

 

_ You sure about that, bub? That ‘nausea’ looks a lot more like butterflies from where I’m standing. _

 

The Winchester scoffed.  _ Then move downwind.  _

 

This habit of having mental arguments with himself was getting a little disturbing, especially since approximately ninety percent of them centered around his roommate. He shook himself and set his shoulders, refocusing on his self-imposed task of dishing up some ice cream for the omega that totally-did- _ not- _ smell good. Castiel accepted the proffered bowl with an almost pornographic moan, foregoing the spoon in favor of sticking his face straight in the bowl.

 

“This makes me…. _ very _ happy.” The omega rumbled. Sam snickered and threw himself onto the other end of the futon without even thinking about what he was doing. In fact, his proximity to the sexually traumatized, sorta-heat-stricken omega didn’t register until said omega went absolutely rigid, staring at Sam as though he might sprout fangs and horns at any second. 

 

“Umm…” 

 

_ Brilliant move, moron. Just completely invade his personal space. Why don’t you whip your dick out, while you’re at it? _

 

_ Shut UP!  _

 

Castiel visibly took a long, deep breath, held it for a few seconds, and let it out just as slowly. All of the tension seeped out of his shoulders and he smiled shyly at the Alpha. 

 

“So, what are we watching tonight?” Castiel was making a very clear effort to behave as though his hormones weren’t going apeshit, and Sam picked up the thread instantly- Winchesters, as a rule, were extremely proficient at denial. 

 

“Well, I’ve got a DVD rip of the new Avengers movie.” Sam offered, and Castiel hummed his approval around a massive spoonful of Moose Tracks. When Sam had the movie started, he stole a glance at his friend and burst out laughing at the large smudge of chocolate decorating the oblivious man’s nose. Castiel’s consternation only served to make him laugh even harder.

 

Through his giggling, Sam licked his thumb and cleaned the cold, sticky smear off Castiel’s nose. The omega’s eyes went crossed as he tried to track what Sam was doing.

 

“You are  _ such  _ a mother hen!” Castiel grumbled, scrubbing the spit off his nose with the edge of his blanket.

 

_ Actually, that’s _ my _ blanket. _

 

_ Oh my fuck, just pipe down. _

 

_ Doesn’t he look precious, all bundled up and smelling like my bed? _

 

_ Jesus, Winchester. What’s wrong with you?! Knock it off! _

 

Blessed silence from the peanut gallery. Thank fuck. 

 

The strangely matched pair settled back onto their futon to watch the movie. Within half an hour, Castiel began fidgeting. Sam ignored it at first, but the light finger tapping and toe wiggling turned into squirming and kicking. The last straw came when Sam narrowly avoided a heel to the groin.

 

“Dude! What, did somebody put itching powder in your boxers or something?” Sam’s bitchface was belied by the playful tone to his voice. 

 

Castiel’s eyebrows knitted together in a way that Sam absolutely refused to acknowledge was adorable. “I am sorry, Sam. I...that is…” The omega’s ears were turning pink as he worried the hem of the blanket between his fingers. He seemed to be struck by another wave of fidgetiness, this time accompanied by a surge in his scent that Sam couldn’t identify, and the humiliated flush spread all the way to Castiel’s collar. 

 

Sam took a deep breath purely on reflex and his whole body jolted in response. “Cas, what the hell is going on?” The omega buried his face in his hands and mumbled something incomprehensible, and Sam heaved a sigh. “Wanna try that again?” 

 

“I said it’s my heat. It’s stronger this time.” Castiel hunched inwards on himself as though he was praying for an extremely well-aimed meteor to land squarely on his forehead. 

 

_ FUCK, he smells so good! _ The voice Sam had dubbed Evil Sam crowed.

 

_ Shut the fuck up.  _

 

_ Make me. _

 

_ Arguing with myself again. Great. Maybe I need to be seeing a shrink rather than Doctor Milligan. _

 

Sam scrubbed at his stubbled cheeks, grumbling under his breath. Just his luck- most people had a voice of reason in the back of their head. He had a pervert. In an effort to distract himself from his less-than-pure thoughts, Sam fumbled for the remote to pause their movie. 

 

“Can I do anything to help?” The words were out of Sam’s mouth before his brain caught up. Castiel stared at him for a few heartbeats -or was it hours?- before smiling shyly. 

 

“I… I wasn’t sure how to ask, but since you’re offering… could I sit closer? You… I mean, your scent…It’s soothing.” Sam boggled at the omega.

 

_ Error 404, snappy comeback not found. _

 

Sam couldn’t get his throat to work. He swallowed convulsively several times, but all that came out was a soft squeak. When words still failed him, he held his arms out to the other man. Castiel gave him a tiny smile and scootched closer, inching his way over until he was pressed right up against Sam from shoulder to hip. He buried his nose in the crook of the Alpha’s neck and inhaled deeply. He rumbled a contented noise, almost a purr, and Sam felt every ounce of tension drain out of the smaller man’s body. Tentatively, as though he was afraid that Castiel might panic and bite him or something, his massive palm closed over the omega’s shoulder. With his free hand, Sam hit play, a small smile tugging at his lips. 

 

Sam jerked slightly, startled back to consciousness by gunfire from the movie. He hadn’t even noticed his eyelids drooping, but now he found himself sprawled out across the entire length of the futon. Granted, it was a bit too short for him and his feet hung over the end, but he wasn’t about to complain- Castiel was sprawled along the length of Sam’s body. The omega was snoring softly and drooling on Sam’s shoulder.

 

_ Eww. _

 

_ That’s too precious for words. _

 

_ But, eww.  _

 

Tentatively, Sam brought both arms up to hold the younger man, burying his nose in Castiel’s unruly mop of raven hair and scenting him as deeply as he dared. He wasn’t quite sure what to make of the fact that Castiel’s heat-scent wasn’t making his stomach queasier than his brother on an airplane. In fact, he actually smelled… good? 

 

_ Strange. _

 

_ Are you actually  _ complaining?!  _ Do you  _ want _ to be puking your spleen up?! _

 

_ No. _

 

_ Then stop questioning it. Good-smelling omega, no nausea, no knot, life is good. _

 

_ Fair point. _

 

Feeling more at peace than he had been in years, the Alpha closed his eyes again.


	7. Chapter 7

When Sam slowly began crawling his way back to consciousness, he immediately felt that something was off. What, he wasn't sure- he was still firmly in lizard brain mode and deductive reasoning wasn't something he was capable of. He was warm, cozy, and Castiel's weight on his chest was comforting. Sam buried his nose in Castiel's hair and breathed deeply, savoring the scent of contented omega.

 

When the pieces snapped into place, it hit him with all the force of a semi at highway speeds. His whole body went rigid as he frantically tried to think of a way to get out of this increasingly horrifying situation without traumatizing the omega worse than he already was.

 

_ Oh, no. _

 

_ No, no, no! _

 

_ Jesus on a bicycle, no! _

  
  


“Cas... Cas! Wake up!” The Winchester hissed, shaking the other man’s shoulder. 

 

“Mmmm….?” Castiel purred, snuggling even deeper into Sam's chest. Now outright frantic, Sam shook him harder.

 

“Cas, you've got to wake up!” 

 

Bleary blue eyes met freaked-out hazel, and Sam was struck by just how adorable the omega was when he was still half asleep. His hair was a riot, sticking up in wild tufts that Sam itched to run his hands through. Muzzy and sleep-warm, the omega looked...and smelled... like everything Sam had ever wanted. 

 

“Waswrong?” Castiel slurred, blinking slowly. Sam was reminded of a cat waking up from an afternoon nap. He snuffled again, getting a noseful of Sam's scent, and suddenly snapped fully awake. Terror shot through the omega, souring the ocean scent that was rapidly becoming Sam's favorite smell on the planet.

 

_ God, he's so scared. Why the fuck did my body have to go and ruin everything?! _

 

_ It's not like it's  _ my  _ fault. Biology is a bitch. _

 

_ But I don't  _ want  _ this! I never consented to my hormones doing this shit to me! _

 

“You're…” the omega seemed incapable of finishing the sentence, and Sam nodded shamefully. He carefully lowered his arms, letting his friend pull away and watching with a mournful expression as the man scrambled backwards to get away from him.

 

“I'm sorry, Cas. I'll call a cab and go get a hotel room for the weekend.” Sam was already reaching for his phone, but was stopped by slender fingers on his wrist. He jumped in surprise and the phone clattered to the floor. Hesitantly, he glanced up at the younger man.

 

Castiel looked wary, but he wasn't running screaming, and Sam couldn't figure out  _ why _ . “I've got to say, you seem remarkably in control of yourself for an Alpha in rut.” 

 

_ He's not running.  _

 

_ Why is he not running? _

 

_ Who cares, he's not running! _

 

“I… I think I should call Doctor Milligan.” Sam stuttered.

 

Castiel made a noise that sounded like a purr. “You smell like you're in rut, but you're not acting like it. Maybe this is like my false heats?” 

 

_ How is he being so calm about this?!? _

 

“I… I think you're right. This doesn't feel like a normal rut for me.” Aaaaaand there went Sam's cheeks, flaming red. Great.

 

Castiel eyed him rather warily for a moment, and Sam braced himself for the absolutely humiliating conversation he knew was about to happen.

 

“What are your ruts usually like?”

 

_ Fuck.  _

 

Sam twisted the edge of his blanket in his fingers, unable to look Cas in the eyes. “Umm… honestly, they fucking suck. I'm asexual, so on top of the normal ‘must mate  _ now’ _ hormones, I'm usually nauseous as all hell because the idea of knotting someone is just…”

 

“Barf-inducing?” Castiel supplied, getting a reluctant snort of laughter.

 

“Pretty much.”

 

They were silent for a few moments before Castiel cleared his throat. “So, um… how do you usually handle that? I was under the impression that  _ not  _ mating would cause extreme discomfort.”

 

_ Ok yeah, my face is going to be red forever. Permanent sunburn, here I come. _

 

When Sam didn't answer, Castiel hesitantly squeezed his shoulder. “Sam… I'm in training to be a doctor. I know I've only been at it for a bit, but I  _ do  _ have a basic grasp of this stuff. Talk to me?”

 

“I'vegotarutsleeve.” It all came out in one big rush, and the omega blinked a few times as he tried to sort out what Sam had said.

 

Finally, Castiel made a noise of understanding. “Cycle aids aren't anything to be embarrassed about, Sam. I've used a false knot before.” 

 

_ Blue screen of death _ . Sam's brain completely ground to a halt as he boggled at the omega.

 

“But I thought… after what happened, I mean…”

 

Castiel gave a dry chuckle. “Yeah, me too. But at the peak of heat, it's even more physically  uncomfortable to  _ not  _ have one than it is mentally. So… heat aids.”

 

Sam groaned and leaned back against the cushion, scrubbing his flaming cheeks with his palms.

 

“Do you need it now?” 

 

The Alpha choked on his own spit. His head snapped around to stare at the omega who had just casually asked him if he needed to slink off to his room and knot a piece of rubber, as though it was no different from inquiring about the weather forecast.

 

_ WHAT?! _

 

“Fuck, Cas! Personal, much?”

 

The omega shrugged. “You bought me slick pads. I assumed we were well past being embarrassed about our biology.” 

 

Ok, now Sam was really confused. It didn't help that most of his blood flow had taken up residence in the lower half of his body, making it a bit hard to focus.

 

_ Heh...hard. Yeah, you could say that. _

 

_ Oh, stick a sock in it. _

 

_ I'd rather stick a  _ knot _ in it, if ya know what I mean. _

 

Sam had to fight down the urge to gag.  _ No, no I really don't. And how did I just mentally wiggle my eyebrows at  _ myself?!  _ Fucking hormones. _

 

With a long-suffering sigh, Sam finally glanced over at his companion. “Right, I guess we’re past all reasonable points of embarrassment, huh?” Castiel nodded, making an encouraging gesture. “Normally, I'd hole up in my room for the duration, try to avoid having to get off until I absolutely had to, and pray it blows over quickly. I've got a stash of aides for when I have no choice about it- my sleeve, lube, and scents.”

 

Castiel cocked his head, a sure sign that he was confused. “Scents?”

 

_ Oh god this is humiliating… _

 

“They make synthetic omega scent. It's calming, helps me keep my head when it gets really bad.” 

The omega pondered this for a moment, staring at Sam. The Alpha got the feeling that the younger man was staring  _ through  _ him, seeing into his very soul. Whatever Castiel saw, he seemed to make a decision and nodded firmly to himself. 

 

_ What the fuck is happening? _

 

_ Fuck it, I don't care. He smells sooo good! _

 

Before Sam could even try to stop him, the omega was crawling into the other man’s personal space. He pressed right up against the Alpha and buried his nose in his shoulder again. Sam froze like a deer in the headlights before bolting to his feet. Unsteady colt-legs sent the Alpha crashing to the floor in an embarrassed heap.

 

_ Real smooth, Winchester. _

 

“Cas… what the hell do you think you're doing?”

 

“I thought it was obvious. Your scent soothes and eases my heat, and mine obviously helps your rut.” The way the omega said it, you'd think he was talking about a baseball game, not the biological imperatives that had caused him to be violently abused at such a tender age. 

 

“But…” Sam protested, only to be cut off by a decisive wave of the omega’s hand.

 

“But, nothing. I trust you, Sam Winchester.” Castiel slithered off the futon and joined Sam on the floor. He stretched out on his chest beside the Alpha and gently pressed him down, forcing Sam to lay flat on his back again. Once Sam was obediently laying down, the omega firmly buried his nose in Sam's chest -right in his armpit, which should have been all manner of gross but in reality was freaking adorable- and breathed deeply. Sam hesitantly nuzzled into Castiel’s hair, a contented rumble bubbling up in his chest. The omega purred in response, and Sam could feel him smiling. Sam trailed his fingers up and down the other man’s spine.

 

“What a pair we make.”

 

Castiel snorted, breath tickling Sam's skin. “An asexual Alpha and a sexually abused omega, in half-assed cycles together. I'm not sure if I should laugh or cry.” 

 

“I vote laugh.” 

 

“Agreed.”

 

They were silent for a long while, laying together and taking comfort in each other's presence. Castiel's free hand found its way to rest on Sam's chest, and Sam tried very very hard to ignore the way that made his heart stutter. Unfortunately, his scent gave it away and he felt the omega’s fingers pause over his sternum.

 

“....Sam?”

 

The Alpha sighed heavily. “Asexual. Not aromantic.” The petting resumed, and he was abruptly whacked in the face with a wave of pleased omega scent. If Cas had possessed a tail, it would have been wagging at warp nine. Sam turned to look at the other man, puzzled.

 

_ I'm not sure what's going on… but I think I like it. _

 

_ Really, really like it. _

 

_ Oh God… Buddha… Cthulhu… whoever the hell is listening... please... _

 

“I'm glad.” Cas murmured, a shy smile stealing over his face. Sam wanted to scream in triumph, but settled for a dopey grin of his own.

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Yeah…”

 

_ FUCK YEAH!!!! _

 

Silence reigned for a bit as they both tried to think things through. Then…

 

“That looks uncomfortable.” Sam's eyebrows made a valiant effort to climb into his hairline when the omega casually waved at Sam's crotch. And yeah, there was a major tent there and there was NO way it had gone unnoticed, but Sam had been hoping that Cas would join him in the land of Denial. 

 

The Alpha grunted noncommittally. “Eh, I'm ok for now.” 

 

_ Three….two…one…. _

 

“If you need to go take care of it, I can give you one of my dirty shirts.”

 

_ Holy mother of fuck!  _

 

“I… that's not necessary, Cas. I've got synthetics.” Sam shifted uncomfortably, trying to subtly rearrange his ‘problem’ without using his hands. Cas snorted.

 

“Well, the offer stands.” The omega paused to yawn broadly. “I think I'm going to go to bed. It's ass o’clock and the floor isn't where I had planned on spending the night. Good night, Sam.” 

 

Sam was left staring blankly as Cas hopped up and made his way down the hall.

 

_ Damn, he has a nice ass. _

 

_ Stop it. Just stop.  _

 

_ But… but… _

 

_ No buts! Or butts, for that matter. Get a grip, Winchester. _

 

And speaking of getting a grip… Sam gritted his teeth against another hormonal surge that made certain parts of his anatomy ache.  _ Dammit. I really don't want to… _ shaking his head, Sam slunk to his own room, absolutely  _ not  _ pausing to listen to the sounds of Cas getting ready for bed, and crawled between the sheets. He tossed and turned for a while, trying to ignore the growing ache between his legs, before finally snarling in frustration and getting up to retrieve his box of supplies. He wrenched the drawer open with more force than was probably necessary and tossed the box towards his bed, where it bounced.

 

Still glaring at the innocuous shoe box as though it had personally offended him, Sam reluctantly sat back down. 

 

_ I hate this. I really, really fucking hate this. _

 

Granted, once he pushed through the feelings of disgust and nausea and actually got down to it, it would feel good. He was a young Alpha, and there wasn't a damned thing wrong with the physical side of things. It was his mind that was grossed out by it. But as soon as the pleasure waned and his knot went down, he'd be right back to repulsed and disgusted with himself. 

 

_ Might as well get it over with… it's not like it's gonna go away. _ Sam had tried that- tried to ignore his aching hard on in the hopes that ‘mind over matter’ would work. That had ended spectacularly badly and Dean had been forced to drive Sam to the ER. The attending physician had made Dean laugh until he nearly barfed when he explained that Sam had literally managed to sprain his knot with his refusal to take care of it. Sam hasn't even known that was a thing. Since he didn't want a repeat of that particularly agonizing discovery, he always gave in. That didn't mean he had to  _ like _ it, though.

 

With a heavy sigh, Sam stripped out of his t-shirt and sweats, folding them neatly on the nightstand. He glared down at his cock, which bobbed merrily at him. Fucker. The lube was retrieved from the stupid shoe box and he popped the cap open, cringing as he spread some of the synthetic slick over his fingers. 

 

_ No sense in putting it off, I guess… _ He hesitantly gripped the hard flesh, bracing himself against the first surge of nausea/pleasure. Ugh. He stroked a couple of times, spreading the slick with perfunctory motions. He avoided touching the base for now, knowing that toying with his knot before it started to swell would make his skin crawl. 

 

Normally, this was the point where Sam would reach for his sleeve and start working towards relief as fast as possible, but his free hand remained where it was for the moment. The low burn in his gut was actually feeling rather pleasurable this time, and he wondered if the suppressants had anything to do with that. Maybe he would call Doctor Milligan in the morning… he turned to glance at his alarm clock and caught a facefull of the shirt he had been wearing. Instantly, Castiel's scent assaulted his nose and he groaned low in his chest.

 

_ Oh, man…  _

 

The real omega scent far outstripped the synthetic spray he kept in his box, ratcheting his arousal up several notches. Before he really noticed what he was doing, he had snatched the shirt up and pressed it to his nose, inhaling deeply. His hormones surged again, causing the very beginnings of his knot to swell.

 

_ Sonofabitch… so good! _ Sam shamelessly buried his nose in the fabric and started stripping his cock faster. He was going to have to shift to the sleeve soon- popping a knot without anything wrapped tight around it absolutely  _ sucked _ , and would probably result in him not completely clearing the pipes, as it were. He drew in another shuddering breath and forced himself to relinquish his grip on his swollen dick so he could retrieve the rut sleeve.

 

There was a wide variety of sleeves on the market, from simple silicone tubes to intricately crafted replicas of porn stars genitalia. Sam had gone with a middle of the road model- the exterior wasn’t molded, but once you got into the slit, it was heavily ribbed and stippled. Just past the entrance was a thick ring that could be tightened by pumping a small mechanical bulb a few times, simulating an omega tightening around his shaft. With shaking hands, he poured more slick into the sleeve and positioned it against the head of his cock, nudging the very tip in.

 

_ Oh… oh, fuck. That's so damned good…  _ unable to contain himself, he snapped his hips up as he sank the sleeve down. A growl clawed its way out of his chest and he started pumping his hand, finally giving in to the hormones blazing in his veins. 

 

But it wasn't enough. It felt incredible, better than any time Sam could remember, but there was an itch burning under his skin. He thrashed on the bed, thrusting almost frantically into the sleeve as he chased release that felt impossibly out of reach. His face landed in the dirty shirt again and he sucked in a desperate breath, filling his lungs with omega-heat scent. He choked back a moan.

 

“Cas…” Sam whimpered through gritted teeth. He rolled over, pinning the wrist holding the sleeve between the mattress and his straining abs. He was getting frantic now and he fucked into the sleeve. “Fuck, Cas…!” 

 

He could feel his knot swelling, the pleasure mounting at breakneck speed, and the Alpha fumbled for the tightening mechanism. The second the sleeve clamped down around him, Sam exploded. He muffled a scream that was absolutely  _ not  _ his roommate's name into the shirt as his knot caught, rope after rope of cum pouring out of him until his balls ached with the emptiness. 

 

Gasping for breath, Sam rolled to the side. He was pouring sweat, the rut sleeve was disgustingly full of ejaculate and would be locked around his shaft until the swelling went down, and the Alpha was starting to shake with horror.

 

_ Oh God, what did I just do?! I just jacked off to my roommate’s scent! _

 

_....and man, was it good... _

 

Outside Sam's bedroom, the omega in question was leaning against the wall, unable to support himself any longer. He had only meant to sneak past Sam's room to get to the bathroom, but at the first muffled whimper of the omega’s name, he had been rooted to the spot, torn between deeply rooted fear and overwhelming arousal. He almost screamed when he felt a tiny trickle of slick wet his thighs.

 

They were both in so much trouble. 

  
  
  



	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to apologize in advance for causing Sam and Cas the pain I've brought on them in this chapter, but I pinky promise that it's going to serve to bring them closer. There ARE some happy parts, but the amount of angst will likely get me shanked with a pitchfork. So, I'll be hiding in my bunker until I think it's safe to come out.

Sam had been terrified that he wouldn’t be able to meet Castiel’s eyes in the morning, but he was  _ very _ practiced at lying through his teeth and pretending nothing was wrong. Castiel appeared none the wiser about Sam’s guilt-laden jerk off session, and Sam breathed a sigh of relief. Granted, the other man had  _ offered _ him a shirt to use. He had basically given permission, right?

 

_ Yeah, somehow that doesn’t make me feel any better... _

 

Doctor Milligan was less than thrilled to find out that Castiel had suffered a second false heat, and that it had triggered a false rut in Sam. They skyped with him rather than attempt to drive in while still affected by their unusual cycles.

 

“Castiel, I’m sorry but you may not be able to continue the trial. These drugs were not developed with chimeras in mind, and I have no way to predict how it will affect you. I had hoped that it would be no different than our female omegas, but that’s obviously gone out the window.” 

 

Castiel nearly sobbed. “Please, don’t cut me out yet. I’m begging you! Maybe it will settle down.” Beside him, Sam nodded enthusiastically. 

 

“Doc, my false rut could have been completely unrelated to Cas.” Doctor Milligan looked dubious, but reluctantly agreed to allow Castiel to continue for one more round of pills.

 

“If he has another false heat, that’s it. I can’t afford to jeopardize this study. I sympathize with your situation, Castiel. I really do. But we have to look at the big picture- if your results skew the study, the drug could be pulled entirely. Think of the number of people who would lose the chance to take control over their cycles. Male omegas and female Alphas are a tiny, almost nonexistent fraction of the population. There just isn’t enough data on genetic chimeras like you for us to run this risk. I only included you as a professional favor to Doctor Mosley. One more month- that’s all I can offer.” Castiel’s hand shot out reflexively, clasping around a startled Sam’s fingers. 

 

“I understand, Doctor. We’ll be in touch if there are any other concerns.” The omega’s voice was hard as iron and as cold as an Alaskan winter, and Sam fought the urge to shudder at the fury radiating from his companion as Castiel slammed the laptop shut. 

 

“It’ll be ok, Cas.” When he turned to look at the omega, Sam was shocked to see tears in his eyes. Castiel shook his head hopelessly, his eyes scrunched shut against the tears threatening to fall, and Sam couldn’t help himself. Gut-churning rut and heat hormones be damned, he grabbed the overwrought omega and folded him into his arms, tucking Castiel’s face into his shoulder. Cas gave a shuddering whimper into Sam’s collar before completely breaking down.

 

_ Poor guy… _

 

Sam wasn’t sure what to do with a weeping omega, but he remembered how Dean had used to hold him and comfort him when they were little kids. With their mom dead and their dad all but following her into the grave, Dean had been mother, father, sibling, and best friend to the young Alpha. He cupped the back of Castiel’s head and stroked his hair, his other hand coming up to rub soothing circles against his lower back. 

 

“Shhh… shhhh… It’s ok, angel. It’s gonna be ok, I promise. That’s it, let it out…” Sam murmured, unconsciously rocking the smaller man. Slowly, the sobs turned to hiccups and finally stopped altogether. The omega swiped at his red eyes and nose.

 

“Fuck, I’m sorry…”

 

Sam cut him off. “No. Don’t apologize. You just got really shitty news, a breakdown is absolutely normal. You feel a bit better, now?” Castiel nodded, though he made no move to pull away. He seemed to still be gathering himself, and Sam was happy to let him draw strength as long as he needed to.

 

_ Even with a face full of snot, he’s adorable. _

 

_ Oh, hell. I’ve got it BAD. _

 

_ Yup. Totally twitterpated. _

 

_ Dammit. _

 

“Cas, you know I’ll be here for you no matter what, right? Study or no, I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

 

The omega cocked his head in confusion and disbelief. “You’ve known me for all of three months. Why would you do that for me?” 

 

“We’re friends.” Sam proclaimed, as though that explained everything.

 

“Just friends?” Castiel teased, though his scent betrayed just how nervous he was about the answer to that. Sam smiled, his eyes dancing.

 

“Well, that depends…”

 

_ OMG dude, no. Shut up before you put your foot so far in your mouth, you shit boot polish! _

 

“Oh? On what?” There was definitely a bit of mischief in the omega’s gaze, and Sam felt an answering thrill zing through is blood.

 

“On whether or not you’d punch me for kissing you.” Castiel blinked owlishly, shock flashing across his features.

 

_ NO! BAD IDEA!! ABORT! ABORT! _

 

Sam braced himself to be hit, or for the omega to scream at him, or just plain bolt out of the room, maybe to go call the cops on the crazy as fuck Alpha. But when nothing happened, he cracked an eye open. Castiel was sitting exactly where he had been, curled up on ‘his’ side of the futon, and was wearing the most beautiful smile Sam had ever seen. Slowly, ever so slowly, the shorter man inched closer until he was right back in Sam’s personal space bubble. 

 

The Winchester held his breath, eyes flicking down to Castiel's chapped lips and back up. He stayed very very still- it was really important that Cas be the one to take this first step. If the traumatized omega could do this, it would prove that he was recovering, that he was finally moving forward. Sam’s heart clenched at the thought.

 

At a seemingly glacial rate, Castiel gravitated towards the Alpha- a moon caught in the gravitational pull of the sun. Their lips brushed, just the barest hint of contact, before the omega drew back. He remained in Sam’s space, all but in his lap, his eyes wide as if he couldn’t quite believe his own daring.

 

“Cas…” Sam breathed. A tiny smile tugged at the omega’s lips in response before he surged forward again, this time planting a chaste but firm kiss squarely on the older man’s lips, a kiss that lasted several heartbeats before they disengaged again. 

 

_ What. the. FUCK. just. Happened? _

 

_ ….How do I make it happen again? _

 

The omega chuckled softly and brushed his knuckles against Sam’s cheek. “Not bad for my first kiss.” 

 

_ First…kiss?  _ I’M  _ his first kiss? Oh thank you sweet merciful Jesus, Thor, Zeus, whoever!!  _

 

Sam smiled back and leaned into the gentle caress. “Practice makes perfect?” he teased.

 

_ Smooth as sandpaper, Winchester. What, are we thirteen again? Pull his pigtails next, whydontcha?  _

 

_ Shut the hell up. _

 

Castiel snorted and shook his head, though he was definitely grinning behind the fingers trying to hide his lower face. “Was that your attempt at flirting with me?” 

 

“That depends- is it working?”  _ Great, now I’m channeling DEAN.  _

 

The omega hummed softly, tapping his finger on his lip as though deep in thought. “Not sure. Maybe I need more examples?” Sam lit up as though it was his own personal Christmas as he slowly pulled Castiel in by his sweater. He kept it innocent, just a tender press of skin-on-skin, and he could feel the omega smiling against his lips. 

 

“So, what’s the verdict?” Sam bumped his forehead against Castiel’s, smiling like the cat that got the canary.

 

“Hmm… Well, I think I liked it, but the plural of anecdote is not data. Further testing is required.” 

 

Sam burst out laughing and threw an arm around the omega’s shoulders, tugging him until the pair were pressed together back-to-front. Castiel hummed in approval and snuggled into the embrace.

 

“Movie?” Sam asked against Castiel’s neck. The blue-eyed man shivered as he nodded.

 

“Movie.” Castiel was all but purring by the time Sam finished thumbing through Netflix one-handed, toying with the omega’s mop of perpetual bedhead with the other. He settled on Firefly and cuddled Cas close, a contented rumble in his chest. His rut hormones were still acting squirrely, but that was a low simmer that he could easily ignore. He had an armful of warm, cuddly omega and his favorite TV series was playing. Life could hardly get better, in his opinion. 

 

Three episodes in, Sam’s phone rang. He nearly jumped out of his skin at the distinct ringtone- Led Zeppelin's “Ramble On”. That ringtone hadn’t played since the knock-down, drag-out fight with his dad that had led him to flee to California. The Winchester lunged for the cell phone, nearly dumping poor Castiel on the floor in his haste. The omega beat a hasty retreat into the kitchen. With shaking fingers, Sam tapped the green phone icon. 

 

“....Sammy?” Sam’s heart skipped, fluttered, and threatened to stop entirely at his brother’s tone. Dean Winchester, consummate manly-man and professional feeling repressor, was crying. And not just a single tear or a cracking voice… full on sobbing.

 

“De’?”

 

“Sam, dad’s gone.” Sam choked, a denial catching in his throat. “He was drunk… wrapped the Impala around a tree.” 

 

“No!” Castiel’s head peaked around the corner, drawn by the Alpha’s horrified scent and shaking voice. One look at Sam’s stricken face and the omega was at his side, clutching Sam’s limp hand.

 

“They...uh… they said he never felt anything. Dead on impact.” Dean sounded like he was fighting the urge to hurl. Knowing him, there wasn’t anything on his stomach other than cheap whiskey right now. Sam kinda envied him for that. 

 

“Say somethin’, Sammy…” 

 

“What do you want me to say?” 

 

“Fuck, I don’t know… Look, he’s being cremated tomorrow. It’s not like anybody would show up to a funeral, anyways.” Sam made a noise that might have been a humorless laugh. It might have also been a sob- there was no real telling right now. 

 

After a few heartbeats, Sam cleared his throat. “De’, where are you right now?” 

 

“An hour east of Salt Lake City. I...we were working a hunt.”

 

“I’m in Stanford, California.” The unspoken offer, almost plea, for Dean to come see him hung in the air.

 

“I’ll be there the day after tomorrow, ok?” 

 

Sam sniffled and nodded before he realized that Dean couldn’t see him. “Be safe?” 

 

“Always, baby brother.” The line went dead and Sam whimpered. Castiel had him wrapped in his arms in an instant, pulling him down to the futon. The cheap black padding wasn’t made for two grown men to lay on chest to chest, but neither cared as Sam snuffled his nose into Castiel’s ratty t-shirt and wept. Drips of saline landed in his shaggy hair and distantly, Sam realized that the omega was crying with him, mourning the loss of a man he’d never even met, all because the Alpha was. He wasn’t sure if the thought was comforting or even more distressing- the last thing he wanted was to bring more sadness into the omega’s life. But on the other hand, having Castiel here to lean on as his heart broke into a million pieces made it feel a little less horrible. 

 

“Sam… Sam, I’m so sorry.” Castiel stroked the other man’s hair, and some part of Sam’s mind -a part that was verging on hysterical- pointed out the sick irony of this situation; just that morning,  _ Sam _ had been holding _ Cas, _ trying to comfort him. He really wasn’t amused by the universe’s sense of humor. 

 

Eventually, Sam cried himself out. He felt wilted, wrung out, and rather soggy.

 

_ Not unlike Castiel’s shirt, actually.  _

 

_ Yuck. _

 

“So, fuck everything about today. I vote we retreat into a blanket fort to lick our wounds and be hormonal at each other.” Castiel deadpanned, and Sam gave a wet giggle in spite of himself. 

 

“Only if you share your ice cream with me.”  The omega snorted and retrieved two heaping bowls full of frozen chocolate deliciousness. Sam produced a hip flask from somewhere, taking several long pulls before offering it to his companion. They swapped the flask for a bowl and both men curled around each other. Part of Castiel wanted to nuzzle in for a kiss, but it seemed like a bad moment for that. Instead, he traced his fingers up and down Sam’s spine. 

 

After a while, Castiel spoke. “Do you want to talk about it?” The Winchester shook his head. “Fair enough. But I’m here if you need me.” 

 

Something warm and fuzzy unfurled in Sam’s chest at the omega’s gentle acceptance and comforting presence. Their feet tangled together in a game of footsie, making Sam smile in spite of the lead weight in his gut. Yes, life kinda sucked right now… but Castiel was a bright streak of sunlight in an otherwise cloudy sky. 

 

_ I think I’m a little in love. _

 

Castiel pulled the Alpha until he could wrap the tattered green plaid blanket around Sam’s shoulders, burrowing in under it and octopussing himself around Sam until all the heart heavy man could see, hear, or smell was adoring omega.

 

_ Correction- a lot. A lot in love. With a male omega who is basically an angel on Earth.  _

 

The last thing Sam remembered before succumbing to an emotionally exhausted sleep was the gentle press of Castiel’s lips to his forehead. 


	9. Chapter 9

Sam should probably be a little ashamed of how much of the next day he spent wrapped up in Castiel's arms, but he just couldn't bring himself to care. Between the last dregs of heat and rut hormones, Sam being put on bereavement leave by his academic advisor, and Cas being terrified of being dropped from the medical trial, they had earned some serious cuddle time in Fort Futon. In fact, if it hadn't been for all the stress they were under, Sam thought that he would have been absolutely ecstatic. 

 

Castiel was the perfect partner for the asexual Alpha- he was completely content to nuzzle together, trade lazy kisses, and enjoy a Lord of the Rings marathon. He never even hinted at wanting more, and Sam couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief at that. 

 

_ We’re gonna have to talk about boundaries eventually… _

 

_ Yeah, but why borrow trouble?  _

 

_ What if he eventually wants more?  _

 

_ Are you kidding? The guy was raped. I doubt he’ll ever want more than this.  _

 

_ You don't want more than this outside of rut, either… _

 

Sam had no response for that one and distracted himself by burying his nose in Castiel's perpetual bedhead, snuffling around and making the omega giggle and shove at him.

 

Lunch time rolled around and neither man was willing or interested in leaving their nest of blankets and pillows, so Sam called in an order to a local Chinese take out place. It was cheap, reasonably good, and they didn't have to put on pants, what more could you ask? Castiel’s protective instincts seemed to be acting up, and Sam finally caught on after the third time the omega fed Sam a piece of broccoli off his own chopsticks, then offered him a sip from the Styrofoam cup of green tea.

 

“Cas, you really don't have to take care of me. I can manage.”

 

The omega made a noise akin to a discontented cat as he swiped a napkin across Sam's cheek. “Don't have to. Want to, though.”

 

“But…”

 

“No ‘buts’, Mister Big Strong Independent Alpha. Let me do this.” Cas batted his eyelashes shamelessly. And yup, that was a surge in the omega’s scent that played with every single one of Sam's Alpha instincts, encouraging him to relent and let his omega nurture him. 

 

_ Wait…  _ my  _ omega?! _

 

_...yes. God help me, I like the sound of that. _

 

“Please, Alpha?”

 

_ Oh, I REALLY like the sound of that. _

 

Sam heaved a sigh and threw himself backwards, flopping into the pile of cushions. “That's fighting dirty.” He pointed an accusing finger at Castiel.

 

There was mischief shining in the omega’s eyes as he gathered up another bite of noodles on his chopsticks and offered them to the prone man. “It worked, didn't it?” 

 

The taller man groaned and half-heartedly swiped at his companion, who easily dodged. 

 

“You're lucky you're cute.” 

 

_ Oh, fuck. I did  _ not  _ just say that out loud _ .

 

Castiel blinked a couple of times, then broke into a wide, toothy grin that made Sam's heart stutter.

 

“You think I'm cute?” He sounded so damned smug. Fuck. 

 

_ I'm so screwed… _

 

“Maybe?” 

 

“You think I'm cute!” 

 

“Oh, hush. Like you haven't been checking out my ass all week.” Castiel choked on a piece of chicken, pounding on his sternum with a closed fist until he cleared the obstruction. Sam snorted. “You haven't exactly been subtle.”

 

Castiel leered at him, giving an exaggerated eyebrow wiggle. “What can I say? It's a lovely ass.” Sam lobbed a pillow at him.

 

“See? You only want me for my body.” 

 

The omega flushed bright pink all the way up to the tips of his ears. “Not  _ just  _ your body. But I wasn't going to say anything.”

 

Sam pushed himself up on his elbows, staring at his roommate as his whole world seemed to shift around him.

 

“Cas?” 

 

The omega huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, a sure sign that he was feeling uncomfortable and off balance. “You're asexual. Kisses and platonic over-the-clothes touches were all I could ever ask for, and all I could ever want from someone as amazing and perfect as you.”

 

_ Me, perfect? Ok so we are gonna have to have a talk about his delusions. Later. Much later. _

 

“But you… I mean, with what happened to you… I didn't think you would ever want more anyways!”

 

Cas was shutting down, drawing inwards on himself, and Sam couldn't bear to see that happen. Not when the omega had made so much progress in the last few months. He carefully scooted closer until he could pull the blue-eyed man in for a tender kiss. Castiel sighed against his lips and visibly relaxed.

 

“I thought so too… but you, you're different. I trust you. You'd never hurt me the way he did.” Cas nuzzled into Sam's neck, breathing his scent and letting it soothe him.

 

“Never. Never, ever, ever. I'd shoot myself first.” Sam promised, voice muffled against raven hair.

 

“We really need to talk about what you want. And what I want, for that matter.” The Winchester finally murmured. Castiel nodded, pulling back just enough that he could speak without a mouthful of Sam's ridiculously long auburn hair.

 

“You first?” Cas asked rather timidly, and Sam pecked him on the lips.

 

“I'm totally fine with stuff like this- kisses, cuddling, touching. I'm even ok with cuddling naked. Making out is alright, too.” 

 

Cas made an encouraging noise when Sam didn't continue. “What about more directly sexual touching? Third base?” The Alpha sighed and shook his head.

 

“My body responds, but I can't get into it.”

 

“What about touching me like that?” Sam jerked in surprise. 

 

“I don't know… would you  _ want  _ me to?” 

 

The omega shrugged, a small smile playing at his lips. “I don't know. I've never let anyone.”

 

“Maybe we could try?” Sam was shooting for casual and missed by a wide margin, his scent turning shy and unsure. Castiel smiled and pressed a kiss to his nose.

 

“I think I'd like that. Maybe once this false heat is completely over? I can't promise that I won't freak the hell out if we tried something right now.”

The pair were silent for a long while, mulling over what they'd just learned about each other. Castiel traced nonsense patterns across Sam's chest, teasing at the edge of his tattered grey tank top from time to time. 

 

“Do you think we can make this work?” The omega whispered, soft enough to deny it. Sam gave a happy rumble from deep in his chest.

 

“I sure as hell want to give it a try.” Castiel leaned up to kiss him again. It felt like a promise.

 

ooooooOOOOOooooo

 

Halfway through their movie marathon, Castiel decided to Skype call his therapist. Sam immediately offered to make himself scarce, but was stopped by a firm hand on his wrist. 

 

“Stay.” Was all Cas said. And stay he did. Doctor Mosley was startled but pleased by Castiel's announcement that he and Sam were developing some kind of relationship. Of course, the news that he might be dropped from the suppressant trial was a blow, but the tentative joy between the strangely well-matched pair made her confident that Castiel wouldn't lose any of the ground he had gained even if he was removed. 

 

“Besides, Sam is still in the program. How can I be scared of an Alpha who doesn't go into ruts?” Sam hid his flush against the back of Castiel's neck.

 

“I'm glad to see you’re holding up well, son. Keep in touch!” The older woman was beaming with pride as they said their goodbyes and severed the connection. 

 

“Am I really doing that well?” Cas asked. Sam grinned at him.

 

“You went from freaking out over my biology to spending the day cuddling with me. Yeah, I'd say that's a huge improvement, babe.” The endearment slipped out before Sam could catch it. “Um…”

 

Castiel purred happily and nuzzled deeper into Sam's lap. “I think I like that.”

 

“Yeah, me too.”

 

_ Score!  _ Inner Sam did a ridiculous happy dance. Sam settled for tightening his arms around the omega and letting himself drift into a nap.

 

He woke up to a familiar face nuzzling and sniffing around his throat. Sam rumbled happily and tipped his head back, allowing the omega free access to his neck.

 

“Your rut’s over.” Castiel pronounced, his voice gravely and sleep-warm. Sam hummed.

 

“So’s your heat.” The Winchester was still mostly asleep, and he would forever blame that on his reaction to Castiel licking a wet stripe from his collar bone to his earlobe.

 

“Ack!! The hell?” Sam squirmed away and stared at the omega, who was grinning down at him with an unrepentant smirk. 

 

“It looked tasty.” Castiel shrugged, and Sam's expression darkened in response to the  _ want _ teasing at the edges of his companion’s scent. His brain finally caught up.

 

“What, you want to start experimenting  _ right now _ ?” The Alpha gasped when Castiel lunged forward and captured his lips. At first  it wasn't much different than their normal kisses- soft, gentle, nothing more than a press of skin on skin. But then, he felt the omega’s tongue tentatively press at the seam of his lips and Sam opened with a soft sigh. 

 

For all that he had never kissed someone before Sam, Castiel was a quick study. Sam could barely keep up as the other man’s tongue dipped in and started mapping out the contours of Sam's mouth. It was tentative, sweet, and Sam's blood sang into response to the affectionate notes in his friend’s scent. They made out like teenagers for ages, only coming up for air when it got to be absolutely necessary, and Sam found himself actually enjoying the dull thrum of arousal in his veins. Be felt no urge to do anything about it, but it was rather pleasant. A nice change from the disgust that usually accompanied it, at least.

 

Finally, Castiel drew back. His already messy hair was hopelessly ruffled, his lips swollen and kiss-bruised. The omega's eyes shone with an almost otherworldly light, dancing joyfully as he processed what he was feeling. 

 

“So, what's the verdict on making out?” Sam teased.

 

“I like it. A  _ lot _ .” Was the breathless reply, and Sam chuckled. “What else can we try?” 

 

_ Awwww, he's so eager!  _

 

Sam laughed at that and tugged the omega down to stretch out beside him. “We don't have to do anything- mmmph!” Whatever he had intended to say was cut off by a mouthful of tongue again.

 

“I  _ want  _ to!”

 

_ Man, if that's how he shuts me up from now on, sign me up! _

 

Sam smiled and gently cupped the other man’s cheeks in both broad palms, easing him back. “Well the next step is usually heavy petting, but I'm really not into that on me. But if you want… I mean, I can…” Sam broke off, nervous energy making his palms sweat and his skin tingle as Castiel caught one of Sam's massive hands in his own. He kissed the tip of Sam's middle finger before bringing it down to rest over his left pectoral muscle. The omega shivered as Sam took the hint and gently stroked there, a thin t-shirt all that stood between bare skin. 

 

“Are you sensitive here?” Sam asked, voice thick in his throat. His thumb brushed a perky nipple and Castiel jerked like he had been electrocuted.

 

“I...uh… I guess so.” The omega gasped, leaning into the contact. “Never thought to try it before.” 

 

Sam growled softly and did it again, getting a breathy whimper in response. He teased at the flesh for a few moments before a thought occurred to him. “Most males aren't this sensitive. Maybe it's part of your chimerism?” He tweaked the puffy nipple, earning a squeal.

 

“You mean, maybe I have some omega breast tissue? It's possible. No one ever did an in depth biopsy panel, they just checked me to see if have a uterus.”

 

_ Hmm… interesting thought. _

 

“And do you?” Sam was pretty fascinated by Castiel's unusual body, though he was generally too polite to ask for details.

 

Cas shook his head. “No uterus. Underdeveloped ovaries, which are what trigger my heats, slick glands where they don't belong. Normal...ah!...normal beta external genitalia.” 

 

_ And speaking of external genitalia, that's  _ not  _ his phone digging into my hip. _

 

_ Huh. That doesn't weird me out nearly as much as I thought it would. _

 

Sam swirled the pad of his thumb around Castiel’s increasingly swollen nipple one more time before switching sides. The omega gave a breathy whine and arched into the touch.

 

“You like second base?” Sam asked, tongue between his teeth in a teasing grin. Castiel nodded enthusiastically. He shifted, swinging one leg over to straddle Sam, inadvertently bringing their groins into contact, and Sam nearly bucked him completely off the futon as he scrambled backwards.

 

“Aaaand that's my line.” Castiel looked horrified with himself.

 

“Oh god, I'm so sorry! I don't know what came over me!” The omega was putting off waves of apologetic, submissive scent and it broke Sam's heart.

 

“Baby, it's ok. I swear. That's why we’re experimenting- to see how we match up and what we can and can't do.” Castiel eyed him with a dubious expression. “Seriously.” 

 

The omega nuzzled into Sam's neck. “For what it's worth, it wasn't touching  _ you  _ like that that  bothered me.” Sam was talking into Castiel’s hair again, almost hiding behind the unruly sex-hair mop. 

 

“Oh?” 

 

_ Might as well tell him… it's gonna have to be talked about anyways. _

 

“You brushed against my knot.” 

 

“Is that the issue?” Castiel didn't try to make eye contact, understanding that some things were easier to talk about when you didn't have to look at someone. After all, he'd spent years talking to Doctor Mosley via the ceiling above her couch.

 

“It's part of it. I mean yeah, my brain recoils at the thought of actually penetrating someone. But I guess something's cross wired in my head- most Alphas, toying with their knot is the fastest way to get them raring to go. Mine's… hypersensitive? Touching it before I absolutely have to makes my stomach roll.” Sam was actually pretty surprised that telling the omega such intimate details was as easy as it was. Maybe it had something to do with Castiel's utter lack of judgement. He had no preconceived notions about how a normal Alpha was supposed to behave. He didn't see Sam's aversion as shameful. 

 

Castiel mulled this over for a while. “You said that penetrating someone is what sets off your disgust with the whole concept.” Sam hummed in assent. “Have you ever considered… the other way around?”

 

_ Wait, what? _

 

_ Is he... talking about… _

 

_ No way! Alphas don't get fucked!  _

 

_ But then again, omegas don't have dicks, either. Until they do.  _

 

_ What if… _

 

“I'd never really considered that. Alphas, as a general rule, aren't really on the receiving end.”

 

Castiel snorted. “There are plenty of homosexual Alphas out there. You live in  _ California,  _ surely you've encountered gay couples before?”

 

_ Huh.  _ “Never really considered how that worked, but I guess so. But wouldn't that hurt? I mean, that's not a hole that's meant to take a knot.”

 

Castiel fixed him with a droll stare. “No, really? I had no idea.”

 

Instantly, Sam felt like a complete tool. “Fuck, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that! I didn't even think…” the omega cut him off with a finger on the lips.

 

“It's ok. No offense taken. Granted, I'm not exactly normal, since an omegs shouldn't have a penis and a beta doesn't produce slick, but I do.” 

 

Sam couldn't quite wrap his head around where this conversation was heading. “So, are you saying that you want to… to fuck me?” 

 

Castiel's arms tightened around him. “I'm saying that if, in time, you were interested in exploring alternate means of coupling that might not affect either of us adversely, I'm open to the concept.”

 

“Maybe. In time.” Sam smiled in agreement. 

 

_ Maybe sooner rather than later? _

 

_ Maybe. _

 

Sam was startled out of his thoughts by Cas gently poking him. “Mah?” came the puzzled response.

 

“Now that your rut is over… I hate to say this, but you need a shower.” Sam tugged his tank top up and sniffed and yeah, he was a little ripe. Granted, stale heat scent wasn't a bouquet of roses either. 

 

“You're not much better, angel.” That particular pet name seemed to send a thrill through Castiel, and Sam filed that away for future reference. The omega sniffed at his own armpit and winced.

 

“Rock paper scissors for first shower?” Sam offered, holding his hands up in the correct position for the game.

 

Castiel shook his head and hopped up, tugging a confused Alpha’s arm until Sam got to his feet, too. “You said naked cuddling was a possibility?” 

 

_ Uhh… where the hell is he going with this? _

 

_ Fuck it, I'm on board! _

 

“Yeah, I did.” Sam drawled. 

 

“Then come cuddle me and scrub my back.” 

 

Sam gave a bark of laughter and chased the omega down the hallway, shedding his shirt and boxers as he went. 

  
  
  



	10. Chapter 10

When Dean showed up the following morning, Sam was shocked by how bedraggled and run down his big brother looked. His unwashed hair was lank and greasy, there were bags under his eyes, and his clothes hung off him as though he hadn’t eaten in forever. At twenty-five, Dean looked closer to fifty. 

 

“De’...” Sam breathed as he dragged the other man in for a hug, shamelessly burying his nose in the crook of Dean’s neck. Dean all but collapsed against his baby brother, a dry sob welling up in his throat as they clung to each other. Wordlessly, Castiel herded them towards the futon. He had expressed his concern to Sam that the elder Winchester might set off Castiel’s phobia of Alphas, but the omega was quickly determining that his fears were baseless. It was hard to be frightened of an Alpha who looked so run down and smelled like defeat incarnate. Granted, it was hard to determine what was the Alpha’s actual scent and what was just due to what he had been through. Stale beer, wet leather, sweat, B.O., and what Castiel thought might be gunpowder… He much prefered Sam’s natural scent.

 

With the brothers safely curled together on the futon, Castiel set about brewing another pot of coffee and starting breakfast. Greasy comfort food seemed like the right route to go for the mourning pair, and Castiel quickly threw together a plate of fried bacon, hash browns, and scrambled eggs for each of them. Sam accepted the offering with a murmur of thanks and stuck it under Dean’s nose, trying to entice him into eating.

 

After a few half-hearted bites, Sam gently nudged his brother. “What happened?”  

 

“We were tracking a bail jumper in Salt Lake City, and dad started acting...weird. Said he kept seeing a woman that looked like mom. Started drinking...well, even more than usual. I didn’t think anything of it. But he took the car, left me knocked out in a hotel room at three A.M....” Dean cut himself off with a heavy sigh. “I should have known something was wrong.” 

 

Sam twitched, like he was about to embrace his brother again but stopped himself. “You couldn’t have known. Dean, it’s  _ dad. _ Since when was he the poster child of sharing and caring?” 

 

Dean snorted. “True.” The Winchesters were silent for a long time, lost in their thoughts. Castiel gently leaned against Sam, offering what strength and comfort he could to the man who was rapidly becoming the most important thing in his life. The Alpha bumped his knee against Castiel’s with a small smile, and Dean’s sharp green eyes tracked the motion suspiciously. 

 

“So… What’s been going on with you?” Dean was practicing the patented Winchester Avoidance of Feelings Tactic. Sam rolled his eyes, but indulged him.

 

“I’m in Stanford’s Law program.” 

 

“Gonna be a big-shot lawyer one day? You’re gonna put me out of business!”

 

Castiel looked at him strangely, and Sam quickly explained. “Dad was a bounty hunter. Tracked down people who got bailed out of jail and skipped town, or who were on the run from warrants. It’s kind of a family business- our granddad did it, too. Dean and I grew up on the road, living out of hotel rooms and the car. I don’t think we spent more than three months in the same school from Kindergarten to graduation.” The Omega winced, though he kept his opinions about such poor parenting to himself. The brothers were mourning, now wasn’t the time to speak ill of the dead.

 

“What about your mother?” 

 

Dean answered before Sam could. “She died when Sam was a baby. Some jackass family member of a bastard dad put back in jail tried to burn our house down. She saved us, but couldn’t make it out, herself.” 

 

The omega choked back a sob- the brothers were orphans, and he had absolutely no idea how to go about comforting his friend. His phone chirped, reminding him that it was time to leave for class, and he was contemplating just saying ‘fuck it’ and not going, when Sam pulled him in for a hug.

 

“Go, Cas. You can’t miss  _ more _ classes. We’ll be ok.” 

 

Castiel leaned deeper into Sam’s chest, not particularly caring that Dean was staring at them with his jaw on the floor. “You sure?”

 

“I promise, Cas. Go on. If you see any of my professors, tell them I’m sorry and I’ll be back soon.” The medical rooms were nowhere near the law building, but Cas nodded anyways. He retrieved his backpack and keys, hugged Sam one more time, and headed out.

 

_ Three...two...one… _

 

“The hell was  _ that, _ Sammy?” And yeah, this was  _ not  _ a conversation Sam wanted to have right now.

 

“The hell was what?” He avoided looking at Dean as he half-heartedly picked at his breakfast. 

 

“Cas. Somethin’ going on between you two?”

 

_ Well, he’s not screaming, at least. Thank God for small miracles? _

 

_ Maybe he just hasn’t figured it out yet? _

 

_ Maybe he’s in shock… _

 

“Sorta, I guess. It’s a long story.” If Sam was hoping that the threat of a long, feeling-filled conversation would put Dean off, he was sadly disappointed.

 

“I got time.” 

 

_ Dammit. _

 

“Cas is an omega.” 

 

Dean blinked several times, as though he couldn’t quite process the statement. “Okay… didn’t know that was possible, but what does that have to do with him getting all cozy with you? Thought you were Ace.” 

 

Sam barked a laugh. “ _ That’s _ your protest? Not that he’s a guy, but that I’m asexual?” 

 

“Well since you’ve been screaming about it since you popped your first knot, yeah it’s a bit to take in.” 

 

Sam sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m not fucking him, if that’s what you’re getting at. He and I… well, for starters there isn’t officially a ‘he and I’ yet. And Cas… well, it’s not my place to tell you about his past, but suffice to say that he’s not interested in the whole ‘dick in hole’ thing, either.” 

 

“So what, you’re into platonic snuggling or something? Whatever floats your boat, man.” 

 

Dean’s easy acceptance of Sam’s budding relationship made the younger Winchester’s head spin. “Thought you’d be pissed.”

 

Dean snorted. “Dude, I’m not dad. I don’t give a shit who you’re  _ not _ sticking your knot in. You’re happy, therefore I’m happy. Besides, it leaves more pussy for me.” 

 

“Dean, you jerk!” Sam whacked him over the head.

 

“Don’t be a little prude, bitch! You don’t know what you’re missing!” Sam started to try to drag his brother into a headlock, but yanked back when he caught a nose full of Dean’s aroma.

 

“DUDE! You’re fucking ripe!” Little Brother instincts kicked in and Sam pulled the neck of his shirt up over his nose as though to protect himself from the stench. Dean lifted his arm and sniffed at his pit, wincing.

 

“Fuck, yeah that’s pretty bad.”

 

“Come on, I’ll get you a towel and some of my sweats. We can wash all your stank-ass laundry after you shower.”

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

Castiel came home hours later to find both Winchester brothers sprawled out on the floor in a nest of pillows and blankets, sharing a mostly empty bottle of whiskey and laughing raucously at the Mythbusters blowing things up. There was a pizza box on the coffee table, evidence that the tipsy pair had at least eaten since Castiel had left for school. The omega smiled indulgently and nudged his way in next to Sam. The younger Alpha smiled drunkenly and wrapped Castiel into a bear hug, shamelessly snuffling his nose into the Omega’s hair.  

 

“Class went well?” Sam’s voice was slurred and his scent muddled by the alcohol, but at least there wasn’t any of the overwhelming sadness that Cas remembered from earlier. Dean seemed much improved as well, and he had obviously bathed and exchanged his filthy flannel and jeans for Sam’s Stanford hoodie and sweats. Regardless of the pain that had brought them back together, Castiel was glad that the Winchesters had reunited- they were good for each other. 

 

“Very well, thank you. My anatomy and physiology professor is rather...perverted… but at least his lessons are memorable.” Sam rumbled a laugh and cuddled the omega even closer. Since he seemed quite relaxed about the blatant PDA in front of his brother, Castiel took the hint and nestled in. 

 

Eventually, Castiel brought up the idea of dinner. Neither Winchester was capable of driving, so they decided to order in yet again. The omega was becoming concerned about their budget -Sam hadn’t had time to pick up many shifts at the bar and Castiel had been forced to quit his job at the library, and the medical study money only stretched  _ so _ far-, but Dean forked over his credit card and told the other two to stop their grumbling. 

 

“If you really have to make it up to me, let me crash here for the night.” Dean scoffed.

 

Sam glanced at Castiel and the pair had a silent conversation. “Actually, we were going to offer to let you stay here until you can get a place of your own.”

 

“Why would I look for a place? I can’t stay.”

 

“Why not? Are you gonna keep hunting? You don’t even have a car right now!” 

 

Dean shot him a filthy look. “I was gonna head back to Uncle Bobby’s, work on repairing Baby, then yeah. Keep hunting.” 

 

Sam blanched. He really hadn’t expected Dean to keep it up, now that their dad was gone. “Dean, this could be your chance at a normal life-”

 

“Let me stop you right there. I’m not cut out for a “normal” life. A mate, 2.5 kids, and a white picket fence? Dude, have you even  _ met _ me? Besides, what the hell would I even do? It’s not like I’ve got any marketable skills.”

 

“You could go back to school.” Dean snorted derisively, but Sam pressed on. “You’re not stupid, even if you play like you’re a dumb jock. You could be a mechanic, or a cop. Hell, I remember you wanted to be a fireman!”

 

Dean snorted again. “Yeah, when I was five. Face it, Sammy. All I’m good at is hunting.” 

 

Sam wanted to scream in frustration. Sensing this, Castiel nuzzled even closer and very deliberately pressed Sam’s nose into the crook of his neck, right where his scent was strongest. The Alpha took a deep breath and visibly relaxed, tension melting out of his frame at the rush of soothing omega scent. 

 

“Alright. You wanna go back to hunting, I won’t stop you. But I’m not going.”’

 

Dean sighed. “I wasn’t gonna ask you to, Sammy. You’re happy here. You’re gonna be a kickass lawyer. Your boyfriend’s gonna be a doctor. You’re both gonna leave me in the dust, and I couldn’t be more proud.”

 

_ Boyfriend? _

 

Sam went rigid, waiting for Castiel to protest the label, but all he could pick up was a wave of omega contentedness that made heat bloom in his stomach. Yeah, the raven-haired really liked the sound of that term, and Sam agreed wholeheartedly.

 

“Well, you’re welcome to stay here and rest for a bit before you get back to it, and of course visit any time you’re in the area.” Castiel piped up. Sam purred in agreement. 

 

“I think I’ll take you up on that. Gonna catch a bus back to Sioux Falls in the morning, get Baby all fixed up, then I’ll come visit for a bit. Take some time off, get my head screwed on straight, ya know?” 

 

“Yeah…”

 

Dean huffed a sigh. “I know they said she’s totaled, but… I couldn’t let them haul her off to the scrap yard. Baby’s… she’s  _ family, _ you know?” 

 

“I know, De’. You need help?” Sam was already considering taking the rest of the semester off. Between Castiel’s false heats and now this, he had missed a  _ lot _ of class. 

 

Dean pointed an accusatory finger at him. “No. I can already tell what you’re thinking, and the answer is no. You’re staying here, you’re staying in school. No withdrawing, no ‘gap semester’, just...no.  _ One _ of us needs to be more than a family disappointment, and that’s sure as Hell not me.” Sam started to say something, only to be cut off by Dean’s palm over his lips. “No.”

 

Obstinance ran deep in the Winchester bloodline. Very, very deep. And Sam did the only thing that was an acceptable answer to Dean silencing him like that- he licked his brother’s palm in a wet, slimy stripe. 

 

“YUCK! What are you, five?!” Dean yelped, smearing the spit all over Sam’s face in retaliation. Castiel dodged flailing limbs to escape the sibling wrestling match that broke out.

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

Dropping Dean off at the bus station was one of the hardest things Sam had done in years, but with Castiel by his side, he made it through. The oddly matched pair returned to their apartment to make an attempt at enjoying their weekend. Castiel had latched onto the idea of visiting the traveling Smithsonian Natural History Museum exhibit, and Sam was all too happy to indulge him. That, and it would be a good distraction from the pain lurking in his chest. So he hopped online, found tickets tickets, and off they went. 

 

Wandering through the exhibits was was interesting, but Sam was a lot more focused on watching Castiel. The omega was enthralled, studying every artifact with an adorably intense look on his face. At some point, the younger man had caught Sam’s hand in his own and not let go. Sam’s heart stuttered, his heart clenching in an increasingly familiar way as he considered just how perfect Castiel’s fingers felt around his own.

 

_ Yup, boyfriend. Definitely like that term.  _ Sam rubbed the omega’s knuckles with his thumb, getting a soft squeeze in response. Castiel’s rumbling stomach led them to a coffee shop, the very one that they had gone to for their first face-to-face meeting months ago. Charlie greeted them enthusiastically and claimed twenty dollars from a groaning Gabriel as she brought them their food- a turkey sandwich on an everything bagel for Sam, and a tuna melt on a sesame bagel for Cas. 

 

“So, are we officially dating? Charlie seems to think we are.” Castiel deadpanned, watching in amusement as Sam choked on his food. 

 

“I...ah, I guess we are. If you’re ok with that?” 

 

In response, Castiel leaned across the table and planted a kiss squarely on Sam’s lips. Charlie squealed joyfully from the counter.

 

“Don’t ask stupid questions, Sam.”


	11. Chapter 11

In the weeks following John Winchester’s death, Sam and Castiel drew closer and closer together, spending nearly every waking moment together. While Sam resumed attending classes and scrambled to make up the ground he had lost, Castiel excelled. He came home with test after test, paper after paper, all bearing a bright red “100%”, and Sam couldn’t be prouder.  Doctor Mosley, Dean, and Castiel’s mother joined his chorus of cheerleading -Dean even threatened to break out the pom poms-, causing a furiously blushing Castiel to threaten to use them all for lab rats. Castiel spent the next twenty-four hours with his phone vibrating almost nonstop as all four of them bombarded him with pictures of cheerleaders. 

 

Thanksgiving break was looming closer, giving the exhausted students a beacon of hope. All Sam could focus on other than the law books swimming in front of his eyes was the promise of a whole week with nothing to do but spoil his boyfriend. The omega had firmly refused to head home, saying that he wanted to save up for the two-week Christmas break instead. Naomi Novak had agreed, mock-scowling at the young Alpha via Skype until he relented. He could see where Cas got his stubborn streak from- Novak omegas were a force to be reckoned with.

 

When Castiel came pelting out of his last class before the official start of Thanksgiving Break, throwing a sheaf of papers over his head and screaming “FREEDOM!” at the top of his lungs, Sam laughed until his sides ached. The Alpha scooped his boyfriend up and spun him around, kissing him soundly to laughter and hoots from other students milling around the quad.

 

“Take me home, Alpha.” Castiel growled softly, his breath tickling Sam’s throat. Sam swallowed around a sudden lump in his throat and all but dragged Castiel to their car by the ridiculous tie the smaller man insisted on wearing.

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

Sam woke up slowly. Sleep didn’t want to relinquish its clutches on him, but his bladder was becoming more and more insistent that he get his sorry ass out of bed. Still mostly asleep, he stumbled down the short hallway to the bathroom, groaning softly as the pressure was relieved. Hands washed, all Sam could think about was returning to his still-warm sheets as he toddled back to his room. He passed Castiel’s room and stopped short, his brain scrambling to catch up to what he was hearing. What he was smelling.

 

_ Oh, son of a bitch. Not again…  _

 

_ Please, God. Not again. _

 

Sam hesitantly rapped his knuckles against the closed door, all but holding his breath. “Cas?”

 

There was no response, other than a muffled moan. Sam winced and tried again, louder this time. “Cas, baby? Can I come in?”

 

“Sam… Saaaaam…” The Alpha wasn’t sure if Castiel was actually responding to him or just moaning in his heat. He set his shoulders and let himself into the omega’s bedroom, bracing himself. What he found nearly stopped him in his tracks- Castiel was fully naked, hard and writhing on the bed. His thighs were glistening with slick, and the scent rolling off him in waves confirmed Sam’s worst fear- this wasn’t another false-heat. Far from it. His boyfriend was fully consumed by his hormones and Sam wanted to weep for him.

 

“Sam, help me…” The omega mewled, reaching out with a shaking hand. The breath he had been holding started burning in his lungs and Sam gasped involuntarily, filling his lungs with the thick scent. He doubled over, reflexively bracing his hands on his knees as he waited for the nausea to overwhelm him, but the urge to retch never came. Granted, his stomach was wavering a tiny bit, but it was a far cry from the usual violent vomiting he experienced when confronted by a heat-stricken omega.

 

_ No time to think about  _ why, _ Winchester. Cas is in trouble! _

 

He quickly crossed the small room and sat down on the edge of the bed, clasping his boyfriend’s sweaty hand. “Hey, angel. I’m here. I’m here…” He whispered, trying to wipe some of the sweat out of the omega’s face with his free hand. You could have knocked the Alpha over with a feather when Castiel moaned low in his chest and rolled over, getting up onto shaking hands and knees and presenting himself.

 

“Alpha, Alpha please! Please help me!” Castiel whined, pressing back even further when Sam stayed exactly where he was.

 

_ Oh, holy fuck. _

 

_ Fuckfuckfuck, what the fuck am I supposed to do with this?! _

 

_ He’s out of his damned mind, he’d never forgive me… especially if I puke all over him!  _

 

_ I can’t handle this shit! _

 

“Castiel, sweetheart… you don’t really want this.  _ I _ don’t really want this! It’s just your heat talking.” 

 

The omega snarled and bowled Sam over, straddling him and grinding across Sam’s ratty sweatpants. Sam cringed away and manhandled the frantic man off of him before he could notice how  _ not _ interested Sam’s dick was. Castiel whined, bucking up against nothing and all but sobbing for his boyfriend to knot him. Sam’s heart broke for the other man- he was going to regret the hell out of anything they did with Castiel’s hormones run amok like this. Instead, he rolled the stricken man over so they were on their sides, pressed back-to-front. 

 

“Baby, where’s your false knot? Can you remember?” 

 

The omega whined again. “Don’ want that. Want  _ you, _ Alpha!” 

 

Sam sighed heavily, pressing chaste kisses to the back of Castiel’s neck, spreading his own scent around to soothe the heat-crazed omega. “Angel… you know that’s not who I am, what I am. I don’t  _ do _ penetration and knotting.” Castiel snarled in frustration and tried to roll over again, but Sam’s grip on him was like iron. 

 

“How about this, baby? I’ll get you off with your toy, take the edge off. Then, once you’re a bit more clear headed, we can talk it out. That sound good to you?” The smaller man nodded enthusiastically, scrambling free of Sam’s arms and ripping his nightstand drawer out in his haste. He came back with his prize- a shapely length of black silicone, about eight inches long, with a thick knot at the base. Sam accepted it, objectively admiring the curvature and the heft of it, before opening his arms to the shaking, sweat-drenched male.

 

“Alpha…” Castiel threw himself into Sam’s embrace, burying his nose against Sam’s throat and sucking in several deep, desperate breaths. Sam let him do it, knowing that even non-rut Alpha scent would help ease some of the hormonal craze that was running rampant in the omega. Castiel was grinding against him again and Sam strategically shifted his knee to give him something to hump other than his unimpressed dick. 

 

“Come on, roll over. I’ll take care of you, baby. I promise. That’s a good boy. Good, sweet little omega.” Sam would have winced at the crappy porn dialogue tripping off his tongue, but his brain seemed to be on some sort of autopilot and the omega in question obviously didn’t mind, if his mad scramble to obey was anything to go by. Sam stroked up and down the naked man’s flank, easing him into the notion that fingers were about to lower.

 

“Baby, I’ve got to make sure that you’re nice and open, ok? I don’t want to hurt you with your… with my knot.” A plan was rapidly coalescing in the Alpha’s mind- he wasn’t ‘up’ to providing the knot his omega craved himself, but maybe… just maybe he could trick Castiel’s hormone drenched brain into thinking that the false knot was the real deal? 

 

_ Fuck, I hope this works. I’m up shit creek without a paddle if it doesn’t. _

 

Castiel hiked one leg up, blatantly exposing himself to the nervous Alpha. Slick was running down his thick, muscular thighs, matting the dusting of hair there, and Sam stared, entranced. The clear, slightly viscous fluid was definitely coming from the omega’s only available hole, and the Alpha wasn’t nearly as put off by that as he’d feared. Slowly and delicately, giving the other man plenty of time to pull away, Sam trailed a thick finger up the rivulets of slick and brushed the pad of his finger around the rim of Castiel’s hole. Immediately, the omega squealed and bucked backwards, searching for more than a tiny tease.

 

Sam huffed a laugh against the back of Castiel’s neck. “Easy, my greedy omega. I’ll take care of you. Trust me.”

 

“Yes, Alpha.” Castiel breathed, though his hips still squirmed. Sam suspected that it was involuntary. He teased and tugged at the omega’s rim, testing the give of the muscle. It wasn’t as slack as Sam remembered a female being, but certainly more so than he had expected. 

 

_ Alright, I can work with this.  _

 

Mindful of how thick his fingers were, Sam carefully pressed in to the first knuckle. Even that slight penetration had the desperate omega writhing, searching for more and moaning mindlessly when he didn’t immediately get it. Sam chuckled again, sending puffs of hot air dancing over the damp hair at the nape of Castiel’s neck.

 

“Easy, omega. I’ve got you.” He pressed deeper, crooking his finger slightly to test just how effective the unusual omega’s slick glands were. His channel was insanely hot, as though he was burning from the inside out with his heat.

 

_ Well, they call it  _ heat _ for a reason, genius. _

 

_ Oh, shut the fuck up. _

 

A second finger joined the first and Sam pumped gently, easing Castiel into the increased stretch.

 

“Alpha,  _ please!  _ Need you! Need your knot!” Cas squealed, dancing on Sam’s fingers. The Alpha hooked his fingers directly into Castiel’s sweet spot, causing him to jerk like he had been struck by lightning. “Saaa-aam!” 

 

“That’s it, pretty omega. That’s just right, let me hear you. So, so beautiful like this.” Sam rumbled deep in his chest. The writhing omega mewled brokenly, slamming himself back onto three thick fingers and searching for more.

 

Satisfied that the smaller man wasn’t going to be injured by the toy, Sam quickly grabbed it from where it had fallen by their knees and positioned it against Castiel’s hole, teasing him with just the very tip. The stricken omega went wild, trying to shove himself backwards enough to get some proper penetration at long last.

 

“Deep breath, baby.” Sam arched up over the younger man, crowding into Castiel’s face and encouraging him to properly scent the Alpha. The hand on the dildo shook a bit when Castiel’s lips and teeth latched onto the column of the Winchester’s throat, sinking in and leaving a perfect imprint of his teeth. Sam groaned and leaned into it, guiding the false cock deep in one languid press. Castiel moaned around the bruise he was happily suckling into the Alpha’s throat, rocking his hips in search of friction on his neglected erection.

 

_ Hmm… maybe I can work with that. _

 

Sam shifted his hips until he could pin the base of the dildo between his powerful thighs. With his hand now free, he snuck his fingers around until he could cup the omega’s prick in a slick-coated hand. Castiel sighed raggedly and began fucking himself between the silicone and Sam’s meaty palm. 

 

“Oh...oh, Sam! Alpha, please! Need to cum!” 

 

Sam could feel the omega’s heartbeat pounding against his sternum. Castiel was drenched in sweat, gasping for breath in the humid, hormone-drenched room. The effort required to keep slamming himself between the tight channel of the Alpha’s hand and the thick dildo had the omega shaking violently, further mangling whatever he was trying to say, reducing him to nothing coherent other than “Alpha”, “please”, and “Sam!”. 

 

_ He’s not gonna last much longer… Time to end this. _

 

The Alpha grinned wolfishly against Castiel’s skin and went in for the kill, pressing the false cock as deep as it would go and easing the knot past the omega’s abused rim. “Come for me, omega.” Just a hint of Alpha order tinged the low growl and Castiel obeyed spectacularly, shrieking his ecstasy as he striped Sam’s palm and the sheets below them with hot cum.

 

Castiel went boneless, slumping like a puppet whose strings had been cut. Sam guided him down to the bed, soothing his heaving sides with gentle strokes. The false cock was left buried in the omega’s body. Sam knew that the omega’s heat-drenched brain would expect them to be ‘tied’ together for a while- an Alpha’s knot could take anywhere from five to thirty minutes to go down. It was an evolutionary quirk designed to keep the omega still and calm for a while, to encourage the Alpha’s seed to catch and impregnate the omega. Granted, that wasn’t possible for Cas in the first place, but hormones wanted what hormones wanted, physical limitations be damned. He settled in behind the smaller man, cuddling him close to maintain the illusion of being knot tied.

 

A few blissful minutes of silence passed as Sam enjoyed the scent of well-satisfied omega that was thick in the air before Castiel started to come around.

 

“Sam?” 

 

The Alpha hummed in response.

 

Castiel wasn’t moving, but every muscle in his body had gone rigid. “...what the fuck just happened?!” 

 

_ Oh, fuck! FUCKFUCKFUCK! _


	12. Chapter 12

Fear...no, outright terror, soured Castiel's scent and Sam wanted to hurl because of it. 

 

“Cas, breathe. Calm down and breathe, ok? You're ok now, but you were slipping into heat sickness.”

 

The omega took a few deep, shuddering breaths, grinding his teeth audibly. “Tell me that's not what I think it is, Samuel.”

 

“It’s not what you think it is. Look.” Sam slowly pulled away and sat up until he was in a position that would have been agonizing and anatomically impossible if it were  _ his  _ knot in the omega. Immediately, some of the tension eased in Castiel’s shoulders and he reached back, confirming for himself that the only thing inside him was the familiar silicone.

 

“You were screaming for me, completely out of your mind. I thought… maybe I could trick your body into thinking that I had given it what your hormones wanted, get you coherent again.” Sam nearly sobbed, choking the words out as fast as he could, begging the omega to believe him.

 

Castiel rolled to look at him. The omega was doing that ‘I can see into your soul' thing again and Sam tried his hardest not to cower under the intense state. 

 

“So, you used your scent and Alpha voice with my false knot to fake it,” the younger man’s face broke into a grin. “Clever.” 

 

Sam felt faint with relief and he leaned in cautiously for a kiss, sighing happily when Cas met him halfway. The omega licked at the seam of Sam's lips and purred when the other man immediately relented. They made out languidly for a while, basking in the post-orgasm haze that washed over the omega’s natural scent.

 

A few minutes later, Castiel broke away with a groan. Sam stared blatantly as the omega rose up on his knees and delicately removed the thick silicone toy from his channel, setting it aside to be cleaned. The sweet tang of fresh slick accompanied it, and for the first time in his adult life, Sam felt himself salivating over it. His blood sang with joy over the delicious notes of well-satisfied omega.

 

Castiel arched an eyebrow at him, simultaneously challenging and lustful. There was no way he had missed the change in Sam's scent, and the Alpha swallowed hard at the look in the other man’s eyes. 

 

The omega purred low in his chest and slithered forward until he could tuck his head under Sam’s chin. “Thank you for the gift of your knot, Alpha.” Sam snorted into the hair in his face and gently slapped Castiel’s bare ass.

 

“Sassy.” 

 

“You love it.” 

 

_ Yeah, I kinda really do. _

 

“So, what now?” Sam stroked up and down the omega’s sweaty back. 

 

“Well, I usually get about half an hour to an hour between heat surges, so I guess we have time to talk?” 

 

Sam hummed. “Maybe we should get a shower while we talk? We’re both covered in slick and sweat.” Castiel hissed -literally hissed!- and wrapped himself around Sam like some sort of octopus. Sam threw his head back laughing. “Fine, fine. Raincheck on the shower. What do we want to do about your next heat surge?”

 

The omega rumbled happily and nuzzled in even deeper. “What you did last time seemed to work really damned well.” 

 

Sam felt a zing of heat surge through him, centering in his gut. “Oh, really now? Does my greedy omega want this knot again?” He growled exaggeratedly.

 

Castiel snickered and rolled onto his back, splaying his thighs invitingly and arching his back. “Oh, please Alpha! Please, I might die without your knot!” There was a moment of silence while they just stared at each other, each willing themselves to not break first, before they collapsed into hysterical laughter.

 

“Oh...my….god! Is that shitty porn dialogue what really happens?!” Castiel gasped between peals of laughter.

 

“How the hell would  _ I  _ know? I ran screaming the first time an omega tried to present for me!” Sam guffawed, swiping at the saline dripping down his cheeks. He held his breath, trying to sober himself a bit, but Castiel ruined it by rolling onto his hands and knees and wiggling his hips exaggeratedly and Sam cracked up all over again.

 

“Oh my fuck, I love you so much.” Sam snorted, carefully pulling the other man in for a kiss. Castiel squeaked and pulled back.

 

“Say that again?”

 

Sam smiled shyly from under his bangs. “I love you, Cas.  _ Oof _ !” The omega tackled him, pressing him down to the mattress and kissing soundly.

 

“I-love-you-too-Sam.” Castiel got out between kisses, giving the Alpha a beaming smile. 

 

Sam cuddled his boyfriend close, bumping their noses together. “Hey, angel?” The omega hummed, and Sam gathered his courage and pressed on. “Remember how you talked about maybe… well, maybe trying things the other way around?” another hum, this one curious and maybe a little hesitant. “You think you might like to give that a go? We could… kinda like I was holding you, but you could pin the knot behind you, against the wall…” 

 

Castiel cut him off with another firm kiss. “Fuck, that sounds  _ amazing _ . Are you sure, Sam?” The omega rutted forward a bit, and Sam could feel the beginnings of the other man’s renewed arousal pressing against his thigh. 

 

“I think I want to try. We won't know unless we give it a shot, right?” 

 

Ever practical, Castiel held his hand up to signal a protest. “What about lube? Do you have any left?”

 

Sam's face burned at the thought that occurred to him. Humiliation, yes… shame, certainly… but also a healthy dose of arousal. That last part is what made him actually move.

 

“Don't want the fake stuff. Got what we need right here.” Thick fingers slid down Castiel's spine, over his tailbone, and traced his still puffy rim. Castiel gasped and swore  

 

“Oh, sweet fucking Christ, Sam!” The omega snarled, bucking almost mindlessly and pressing a suddenly renewed erection into Sam's lower belly. “Fuck, that's so damned filthy…”

 

_ Dammit I shouldn't have said anything.... _

 

_ He must think I'm such a  _ freak!

 

_ But… if he thinks I'm a freak, why does he smell so turned on? _

 

“Sam, if I wasn't clear… that is the single sexiest thing I've ever heard, and the mental image damned near made me blow a load all over you.” Castiel's normally gravely voice dropped another octave, sending a thrill down Sam's spine. The Alpha brazenly cupped Castiel’s cock, squeezing gently when the smaller man moaned. 

 

“Fuck me, Cas.” Sam drawled. Castiel blinked, frozen like a deer in the headlights as the much larger man rolled onto his back with his legs spread, mimicking Castiel’s earlier pose. His thumbs hooked into the waistband of his tattered sweatpants, teasing it down just enough to give Cas a glimpse of hair.

 

“Yes, Alpha…” Castiel breathed.

 

_ Fuck, that's so hot. _

 

The omega batted Sam's hands away and carefully pulled the fabric down. He tossed the pants towards the hamper, not particularly caring if they actually made it or not, his attention fixed on the man under him. Sam was barely half hard, but Castiel took that as a compliment- he could get a reaction out of the asexual Alpha! 

 

Another wave of heat-scent filled the small room, and Sam nudged Castiel’s flank with his heel. “Running out of time, Cas.”

 

Castiel’s Adam’s Apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, and Sam tracked the motion hungrily. “I don't want to hurt you.”

 

_ I'd laugh myself sick if that wasn't so damned sweet… _

 

Sam caught Castiel's hand in his own, squeezing reassuringly before guiding it down past his cock and even lower. Drawn as though a moth to a flame, the omega inched forward until he could ghost the tip of one finger over Sam's tightly furled hole. He glanced up, catching Sam's eyes, and the Alpha gave him what he hoped was a reassuring smile. Castiel smiled shakily and added a little more pressure, hesitantly exploring the delicate area. 

 

_ Ok, that's not so bad. _

 

_ Not great, but at least I'm not puking? _

 

_ I was hoping for better than ‘not vomit inducing’, though… _

 

Sam had done a bit of research on the mechanics of the act, and most of it had promised him mind bending amounts of pleasure, trumping all but a peak-rut orgasm. So far, he wasn't impressed. Movement caught his eye and he gasped when he realized that Castiel had his free hand between his own legs, gathering some slick, and heat surged through his body again. The damp fingers took the place of the dry ones, and the omega pressed in with a bit more confidence.

 

“This ok?” Castiel breathed as he worked one finger in as far as he could. The easy glide provided by the slick was a world better than the dry scrape from before, but he was still waiting for the promised fireworks. It wasn't unpleasant, though.

 

_ And honestly, the intimacy of it is good enough. _

 

_ “Intimacy”, says the Alpha with a finger up his ass. _

 

_ Shut. The. HELL. Up! _

 

Sam tuned back in just in time to feel Castiel adding a second finger.

 

_ Ok, that burns a little. Not too bad, though. _

 

“You ok, Sam?” Castiel breathed, studying him closely.

 

“Yeah, I'm good.” The omega eyed him dubiously, but nodded. He began gingerly scissoring his fingers, encouraging the tense muscles to loosen, and inadvertently brushed Sam's prostate in the process.

 

Sam jerked in surprise and yelped, causing the omega to yank his hand back as quickly as he could. “Sam, I'm sorry! Did I hurt you?”

 

_ HURT me?? That felt incredible! _

 

“You tagged my prostate, I think.” Sam was still reeling a bit, but he snorted a laugh at the obvious ‘lightbulb moment’ the omega had. Castiel penetrated him again and began searching for that bundle of nerves with an intense look of concentration.

 

_ I feel like one of his biology projects.  _

 

The pads of Castiel's probing fingers located the squishy gland and pressed down, and Sam's vision went grey around the edges, pleasure singing through him like wildfire. He moaned loudly and squirmed under the firm pressure.

 

“Hey, Sam?” 

 

Sam keened, making a garbled attempt at responding.

 

Don't look now, but… you're hard.” 

The taller man shoved himself up on shaky elbows and glanced down and was pleasantly surprised to find that Cas was right- he was sporting a fairly impressive hard-on, complete with the beginnings of a knot. Sam groaned.

 

“Feels good…” Sam breathed. The omega hummed in approval and started pumping his fingers, hooking them into that sweet spot on every pass. A third finger joined the party and Sam whined, arching into the other man.

 

The pleasure was starting to fog his brain a bit, and Sam pried his eyes open to check on Cas. The omega was sweating heavily, his eyes glazed and wild, and he was clearly struggling to keep up his ministrations.

 

_ Fuck, out of time. _

 

“Cas, baby… we need to move this along.”

 

“Don' wanna hurt you.” Castiel slurred. His eyes rolled and a fresh wave of slick gushed over Sam's knee where the other man was straddling him. 

 

_ Gonna have to take the lead again, I guess… _

 

_ That shouldn't make me  _ this  _ happy. God, I'm a freak. _

 

Sam shook his head to clear the self-hating thoughts and pulled away, smiling to himself at Castiel's whine of protest. “Come on, angel. Gonna make you feel  _ so _ good.” He guided the omega to lay on his side with his back to the wall. The forgotten false knot was retrieved, and Sam took a moment to gather another palmful of his omega’s slick before he pressed the dildo in and wedged the base against the wall. Castiel keened, already fucking himself back onto the thick silicone.

 

“Alright, babe. I've gotcha.” Sam cupped Castiel's cock in his wet palm and stroked it, spreading the slick up and down the length.

 

_ Umm… that's awfully thick. Don't know if I can take it. _

 

_ Fuck this, I'm trying it anyways.  _

 

Sam scootched back until he was flush against the omega’s heaving chest, hooking his leg up and over Castiel's to expose himself properly. With a shaking hand, he fumbled the omega’s dick into position.

 

“Go ahead, Cas. Fuck your Alpha.” 

 

The noise Castiel made in response wasn't human. It was some sort of broken, gutpunched moan torn from his belly and accompanied by an overwhelming surge in the omega’s heat-muddled scent.

 

“Alpha…” Castiel whimpered as he nudged the thick, bulbous head of his cock deeper into Sam's body. It snagged and rode right along Sam's prostate, and the Alpha muffled a scream against his forearm as pleasure lit up his whole body like a lightning strike.

 

“Oh!” before he even processed what was happening, Sam shoved backwards as hard as he could. The omega squealed at the dual stimulation of being impaled on a knot and suddenly finding himself balls deep in the Alpha.

 

Pleasure beyond anything he could remember outside of Rut was scorching through Sam’s body, stealing his breath away and making tears prickle at the corners of his eyes. His cock was fully in the game now, achingly hard and throbbing against his belly and bouncing with every thrust from the omega inside him. His knot was swelling, for fucks sake! He fumbled to get a hand around the sensitive organ, but Castiel beat him to it. The heat-stricken man’s hand clenched firmly around the base, putting pressure on the growing bulge.

 

“Cas! Shit, Castiel!” Sam screamed, head reeling- The omega was fighting through his overwhelming heat hormones to make sure that Sam felt nothing but pleasure and it made Sam's heart clench.

 

_ He remembered. He remembered that I said popping a knot with nothing around it hurts _ .

 

_ God, I love him. _

 

The omega was gasping for breath against Sam's neck, pumping himself between the dildo in him and the tight clench of Sam's body mindlessly. “Alpha… Alpha, please! Please let me cum!”  

 

Sam would have kicked himself if he had the brainpower to spare, but his mind was completely fogged by the incredible amount of pleasure singing through him with every press of his lover’s hips. He gathered up what brain cells remained and wrapped his hand over Castiel’s, squeezing hard.

 

“Come, omega. Come for me!” Castiel’s muscles locked up and he howled in pleasure, flooding Sam's body with what felt like gallons of hot seed. His hand clenched reflexively, squeezing Sam's knot, and Sam followed him over the edge with a choked curse. When Castiel’s hand went limp he finished the last few pumps himself, milking his cock languidly until the spurts stopped. 

 

_ So… that happened. So much for asexual.  _ Sam tried to envision doing this with literally anyone else and immediately had to fight down nausea.

 

_ Nope, still Ace. Castiel is just the exception to the rule.  _

 

_ Cas-sexual. _

 

Sam snorted at his own crappy joke. The laughter caused him to get a good lungful of the other man’s scent and he was pleased to note that the heat-scent was receding. “Cas? You ok?” The omega only snored, and Sam giggled quietly. Yeah, he was just fine.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long! I was in a car wreck and got pretty banged up. I'm ok, nothing broken, but haven't been in the mood to write for the last few days. Sorry! Have a super-duper long chapter to make up for it!

Sam rolled out of bed with a wince and an unusual hitch in his step. They were on day three of Castiel's heat, and although the waves were a few hours apart now, Sam was feeling the strain. His suppressants were working and he hadn't gone into Rut in response to Castiel’s pheromones, so he didn't have the same pain numbing and exhaustion reducing benefits that the omega was experiencing. 

 

Every step sent a spike of pain through the young Alpha. Granted, it wasn't too bad but it certainly left him uncomfortable and sitting very delicately. He wouldn't be bottoming again for a  _ while,  _ and they were starting to run out of ideas. He sighed heavily and started pouring a bowl of cereal of his omega.

 

Between heat spikes, Sam was working hard to keep the other man fed and hydrated. Producing such copious amounts of slick took a toll on Castiel’s system. Combine that with exertion and heat-sweat and it was a recipe for rapid dehydration. He retrieved a fresh bottle of Gatorade and made his way back to his bedroom, cereal in hand.

 

“Hey, Cas. Got you some food.” The omega was dozing, drooling on Sam's pillow -which the Alpha would  _ never  _ admit that he found adorable- and recovering from their most recent round of lovemaking. Sam had tapped out and used the false knot on his boyfriend again, with spectacular results- the omega had cum streaked all the way up his chest and into his own hair. Sam snorted.

 

“Aaaaangel… wake uuuuuppp.” Sam singsonged, prodding the other man with the cold Gatorade bottle. Castiel hissed at him and burrowed deeper into the blankets.

 

“Wake up, babe. You need to eat, and to hydrate, and I'm going to change those sheets.”

 

_ Yeah, that bedding’s freaking filthy. Time for a trip to the laundry room. _

 

_ …I can't wait to mess up the clean set! _

 

Sam blinked, pondering his train of thought. And yeah, if he had to admit it, he really was enjoying spending Castiel's heat with him. The sex itself… eh, he could take it or leave it. But the incredible intimacy of being trusted to provide for his omega during such a vulnerable time…  _ Fuck yeah.  _

 

He poked the recalcitrant omega again. “Cas, eat or I'm dumping it over your head.”

 

Disheveled, rather greasy black hair popped up, and Castiel fixed him with a glare that might have killed a lesser man. “You wouldn't  _ dare.”  _

 

“Oh, wouldn't I? That sounds like a challenge.” Sam raised the bowl theatrically and made like he was going to start pouring the cold milk on his omega, who squealed and scrambled out of bed so fast that he got tangled in the blanket.

 

“Never mind! I'm up, I'm up!” 

 

Sam chuckled. “Good boy.” The younger man accepted the bowl and the accompanying bottle of orange liquid, though he didn't start eating. Instead, he watched the way Sam moved in discomfort.

 

“Sam… if I'm hurting you, we need to stop. I can get by with just my toy.”

 

The Winchester waved a hand sharply, cutting him off. “No. Absolutely not. You trust me and want my help, so I'm going to keep helping. We just need to lay off my ass for a while.” 

 

Castiel nodded and dug into his food, talking around mouthfuls. “Then we need other options.” 

The Alpha was tempted to wait until his boyfriend was swallowing to drop his latest idea, just to watch milk shoot out of his nose, but resisted the urge. Poor Castiel felt crappy enough as it was, he didn't need Sam adding to it.

 

“I could blow you.” Sam offered. “Suck you off and fuck you with the toy.”

 

The omega’s eyes went dinner plate wide as he processed what Sam was saying. “That...ah… That sounds amazing!” Already, Sam could already detect an upswing in Castiel’s scent, signaling another heat surge.

 

“Up. I want to change the bedding before you have another spike. It's gross.” They'd already trashed Castiel's bed, and with only three sets of sheets between them, laundry was going to have to become a priority soon. The tiny apartment didn't have good airflow and the heat scent was getting oppressive. 

 

Castiel hopped to his feet and set his empty bowl aside so he could help strip the bed. All the dirty sheets and blankets got tossed out into the living room, where Sam would take them down to be laundered. The omega had made it abundantly clear that he wasn't willing to leave the apartment even during a lull in his cycle, and Sam was happy to oblige him; however, he  _ was  _ contemplating calling a laundry service to come pick everything up. He didn't want to leave his stricken omega unattended, and such services were very commonly used by both omegas and Alphas during their cycles. 

 

Sheets changed, Sam didn't even bother with a blanket before he tugged Castiel down to the mattress again. The omega went happily, laughing at the enthusiastic way the Alpha snuffled along his bare torso and down his happy trail. A gentle nudge was all Sam needed to get his boyfriend to spread his legs, and he settled between them as though they had been doing this forever. The omega’s cock twitched and began filling right in front of Sam's nose and he couldn't resist flicking his tongue out to trace up the soft skin.

 

Castiel whined, his hips making aborted little thrusts in search of more of that wet slide. “Saaaam…” he sighed, and the Alpha chuckled against a muscular thigh.

 

“Easy, sweet omega. I've never done this before. Gotta go slow, learn how to please you.” Sam smirked and repeated the tongue flick, traveling root to tip in one hot stripe. Cas squealed. His hand snapped out reflexively and tangled into Sam's shaggy hair, using him as an anchor point as the Alpha lavished short kitten licks over the sensitive head. Sam used one muscular arm to pin the omega’s hips to the bed, and the other hand to tease and toy with Castiel’s foreskin. The Alpha had been circumcised and he was fascinated by the natural cock in front of him. He drew the extra skin back a bit, exposing the bulbous head, and ran his tongue under the folds.

 

The omega gasped, wrenching Sam’s hair hard enough to make the other man cry out around the cock in his mouth. The pinpoints of pain caused a surge of heat to flash through Sam’s veins. He inched his way down, taking more of the shaft into his mouth, and gave a garbled moan when Castiel yanked his hair again. 

 

_ His heat-scent is getting stronger. Not gonna be coherent for much longer.  _

 

“Cas, pass me your toy?” The omega obeyed with shaking hands. Sam never relinquished his mouthful as he began teasing one finger around Castiel’s slack rim. With the number of times Sam had fingered the omega and used the false knot on him, he was as loose as a female. The Alpha groaned softly and sank two fingers in to the last knuckle, crooking them expertly into Castiel’s sweet spot, massaging the spongy tissue just the way the omega liked it. Castiel squealed and a fresh surge of slick drenched Sam’s hand. The Alpha would later blame what happened next on his most base instincts- he released Castiel’s cock with a lewd pop and dipped further down, lapping the dribble of sweet-smelling lubricant straight from the source. 

 

_ “Alpha!” _ Castiel screamed. His hands clenched in Sam’s hair so hard that a few follicles were yanked out. Sam growled deep in his chest, a harsh, animalistic sound, and pressed his tongue deeper, searching for even more of the omega’s slick.

_ Tastes sooo damned good!  _ Anything else Sam might have thought dissolved into a haze of pheromones and white noise when Castiel began shamelessly begging, writhing on the tip of his Alpha’s tongue. 

 

“Sam! Alpha, please! Fuck, more pleaseplease _ please! _ ” The omega howled when Sam pinned his hips down and tongue fucked him mercilessly, lapping all around the rim before diving in and pressing the thick muscle of his tongue as deep as he could. Another gush of slick landed directly on Sam’s tongue and the omega surged up, wailing brokenly. 

 

Blindly, Sam groped for the false knot. He palmed it and guided it into position, setting it just under where his mouth was sealed over Castiel’s twitching hole. “Gonna knot you, sweet omega.” Sam rumbled, hot puffs of air caressing the swollen flesh. Castiel keened in response and Sam pressed the silicone cock in, pumping it in and out a few times before easing the bulbous knot past the omega’s rim. Once it was in, Sam resumed lapping around the obscenely stretched hole, cleaning up every drop of slick that leaked past the heat aid.

 

“Cum for me, omega.” Sam ordered. He didn’t move an inch from his position between Castiel’s legs as the other man grabbed his own cock and stripped it in ragged strokes. He angled his dick towards Sam, screaming himself hoarse as he sprayed pulses of cum all over the Alpha’s face and hair. 

 

“Shit!” Sam snarled as the hot liquid hit him. His own orgasm hit him completely out of left field  and he spilled between his belly and the sheets. The Alpha clenched his teeth around a pained whine. 

 

Castiel propped himself up on his elbows, staring at the panting Alpha with some combination of awe and horror. “Sam, I’m so sorry!” Before Sam could ask what the omega meant, he found himself flat on his back with a concerned omega pawing at him. 

 

“The hell, Cas?” 

 

“You orgasmed without pressure around your knot! I didn’t mean to cause you pain!” The raven-haired man sounded almost frantic, his voice wavering, and Sam couldn’t help but laugh breathlessly.

 

“It’s not gonna kill me, babe. It just aches. I guess it’s kind of similar to smacking your elbow- all pins-and-needles.”

 

“That sounds horrible, to be honest.”

 

Sam grunted, pressing the heel of his palm over the aching flesh. “It’s not a walk in the park, but I’ll survive. Honestly, I’m kind of shocked I got off in the first place.” 

 

Castiel chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. “Can I help at all? Will ice make it better?” The Alpha snorted. 

 

“No to the ice. The only thing that will help, other than waiting it out, is getting off properly.” 

 

_ Man, could this get  _ any _ more awkward? _

 

“I could help you with that… if you wanted me to, that is.” Big, cerulean eyes peered up at Sam beseechingly.

 

_ I just  _ had _ to ask, didn’t I? _

 

Before Sam could reply, Castiel was crawling towards him. He nuzzled into Sam’s side, shamelessly scenting the other man, and traced his fingers down Sam’s sternum. The Alpha hummed softly and pressed a kiss to Castiel’s sweat-soaked mop of hair.

 

“I’m not sure this is gonna work, babe. You know how I am. I… I don’t want to upset you if it doesn’t work.” 

 

Castiel scoffed. “It can’t make it worse, right?” Sam shook his head. “Then I want to try.”

 

The Alpha chuckled and flopped back onto the bed, arms and legs akimbo. “Have at me, then.” Castiel smiled and kissed Sam’s cheek before inching his way downwards until he could lay between the Alpha’s splayed legs. With his heat temporarily beaten into submission, he was clear-headed enough to appreciate the view he was being treated to and the amount of trust the asexual Alpha was displaying. He flicked his tongue out, tasting the dregs of Sam’s release that were still clinging to his still-hard cock. 

 

“That ok so far?”

 

Sam snorted. “I don’t feel like hurling, if that’s what you’re asking.” 

 

“Wow, what a shining review. ‘Doesn’t make me want to barf’. Way to stroke my ego.” Castiel deadpanned, his eyes dancing with laughter. Sam cuffed him upside the head. The omega winked and started mouthing at the flesh in front of him, pressing delicate kisses up and down the length of it. He nuzzled against it, avoiding the swollen knot at the base for the moment. “How long do you usually stay hard before you knot goes down?”

 

Sam grunted when the omega wrapped a hand around his shaft. “It depends. When I’m in Rut, up to half an hour, and I can orgasm several times rapid succession. I don’t jerk off outside of Rut often enough to really know for sure.” His hips twitched, torn between pulling away and thrusting into the loose circle of the omega’s fist. Instinct told him he wanted more, his sexuality begged to differ, and the Alpha was caught in the middle. 

 

“I’ll try to make it quick, then. But I need you to talk to me, tell me how it feels. And please, don’t puke on me.” Castiel gathered a bit of his own slick and used it to coat the Alpha’s length, easing the friction, and Sam hummed.

 

“That’s better. Doesn’t feel as… I don’t know how to describe it. Doesn’t make my stomach drop as bad. And I swear I’ll aim for the floor if I chuck.” Castiel snorted and tightened his grip, twisting his fist on every upstroke the way he himself liked it. Sam’s ragged gasp and the way his hips jerked told the omega he was on the right track. 

 

_ Fuck me sideways, that feels so damned good! _

 

_ Bonus points- I don’t feel like barfing.  _

 

_ ….Cassexual for the win! _

 

Whatever it was about Castiel that made him respond differently than usual, the Alpha wasn’t going to complain. He could feel the heat building rapidly in his gut, scorching through his veins at breakneck speed. 

 

_ Shit, not gonna set any endurance records today. _

 

Sam groaned, low and animalistic, and wrapped his fingers around his knot. He squeezed tightly, making the omega give a whimper of sympathy. 

 

“Doesn’t that hurt?” Castiel asked, though he never paused in his own strokes. 

 

Sam shook his head. “Feels good.” He gritted out past clenched teeth. The Alpha’s hips churned involuntarily, instinct driving him to seek a whole to sink his knot into. His eyes flew open -when had he closed them?- when Castiel slapped the Alpha’s hand away and replaced it with his own, clenching firmly. Sam howled in relief and blinding pleasure as the first jets of cum poured out of him. A heartbeat later, the omega’s mouth was on him and Castiel swallowed down every drop Sam had to offer. He continued to milk the Alpha until he was sure he had gotten it all, his strokes becoming loose and tender as Sam became overstimulated.

 

“Better?” Sam’s bleary eyes focused on the omega, who opened his mouth to display the remnants of the other man’s release on his tongue. 

 

Sam chuckled breathlessly. “You’re fucking kinky, you know that?” That earned a snicker from the omega.

 

“Says the Alpha who likes getting fucked, and can get off untouched just by rimming me.” Sam had no response for that. “Come on. We  _ desperately  _ need a shower. And to change the bedding.”

 

“Yeah, that’s gonna be a problem- that was our last clean set!”

 

“Shit.”

 

“Yeah. I’m gonna call a laundering service, ok?  _ Then  _ we can shower.” 

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

With fresh bedding provided by the laundering service, Sam was all too happy to curl up around his omega and take a well-earned nap. Castiel’s scent was mild for the moment, telling him that they would get a nice, long break before the next heat surge. The Alpha was greatful- outside of a rut, he had  _ never _ orgasmed this many times so quickly. His dick was sore, for fucks sake! 

 

With Castiel snoring away, Sam took the time to email Doctor Milligan and inform him of Castiel’s full-blown heat. The doctor was very apologetic about dropping the omega from the program, but reiterated that it couldn’t be helped. He also recommended that Sam take a double dose of his Rut suppressants, just to make sure that he didn’t get triggered. After three days of being subjected to Castiel’s heat without being thrown into Rut, it was unlikely, but Doctor Milligan didn’t want to risk it and Sam obeyed. The  _ last _ thing he wanted was to risk anything going wrong. Meds taken, he let himself drift off, wrapped around the other man protectively. 

 

The pair woke up hours later to Castiel’s rumbling stomach. Since his scent was still a long way from surge levels, Sam insisted on feeding him as much as the omega would tolerate. He reheated some of their leftover pizza and dragged Castiel out to the futon, where they snuggled together and watched Star Trek reruns until the omega began to squirm uncomfortably. 

 

“Again?” Sam asked against Castiel’s temple. 

 

The omega nodded with a groan. “I hate this so much.” 

 

Sam kissed him softly, trying to reassure the frustrated man. “It hasn’t been  _ that _ bad, right? I mean, you seem like you’ve enjoyed yourself for the most part.”

 

“Yes, but I wish it wasn’t because my hormones demand it! I wish we were doing this because we  _ want _ to, not because I  _ have _ to!” Sam winced in response to his boyfriend’s rant.

 

_ Ouch. _

 

Castiel must have noticed the way Sam flinched, because he quickly turned and pressed a reassuring kiss to the Alpha’s lips. 

 

“Sam, I want you to know that I love the intimacy, even if it’s been forced on us by biology. You’re a kind, thoughtful, attentive Alpha and I can’t imagine letting  _ anyone _ else help me through this. I haven’t had a heat this manageable in years- normally, by this point I’m a dehydrated, famished, filthy mess and my false knot would be losing its effectiveness. With you, I’m clean, satisfied, as comfortable as possible, and I feel so safe and loved. I can hardly believe that it’s true.” 

 

Sam blushed under the praise, hiding his nose against the omega’s stubbled cheek. Actually, it was a lot more than stubble- Castiel hadn’t shaved in days and he was developing a respectable beard. The omega winced at the way his cheek scraped Sam’s skin.

 

“I’ve got to shave. I must look like a strung-out hippy.” 

 

The Alpha purred. “I could help you, if you want.”

 

“I think I’d like that.”

 

Sam’s hand snuck down Castiel’s ratty sweat pants and cupped the erection he found there, teasing at the foreskin by pinching it gently and drawing it back and forth. Castiel whimpered, rocking into the gentle touch for a few moments before struggling to his feet.

 

“Stay.” He told the puzzled Alpha as he vanished into Sam’s bedroom, returning a moment later with the heat toy. He nudged Sam’s thighs apart, set the dildo between them, and pressed them closed again. Sam groaned, quickly figuring out what his omega wanted.

 

“Gonna ride me, sweet omega? Gonna fuck yourself on my knot?” Sam growled. He tugged Castiel’s sweatpants down and spun him around. He couldn’t resist leaning in to lick a broad stripe over the omega’s drenched hole before guiding the other man into position. Castiel whimpered and sank down on the silicone.

 

“Oh…!” The omega sighed happily as he was filled. Sam rumbled in response and pulled his omega’s hips flush with his own. He nuzzled his nose into the crook of Castiel’s neck, worrying the tender skin there with lips and teeth as Cas began bouncing on the toy. The omega cried out brokenly and the heat-scent he was putting off became almost overwhelming.

 

“Alpha, please! Please knot me! Fuck me, fill me up!” Castiel babbled, his hips churning desperately. Sweat was pouring off him, mixing with Sam’s and making their bodies slip and slide as they moved together.

 

Sam let himself be drawn into the fantasy. “That’s it, baby. Fuck, you’re so tight, so wet. You gonna make me pop my knot, omega? Gonna take it all, let me pump you full of my cum?” Castiel squealed, nodding frantically. 

 

“Want it! Want your cum! Want your pups!” 

 

Sam gasped, the hormone-drenched declaration hitting him like a punch to the gut. Part of him wanted to bury his face in Castiel’s neck and sob for what they could never have, but he thrust that aside- it was just the omega’s hormones gone berserk, it didn’t really mean anything. He could roll with it, though.

 

“Of course you do, baby. And I’m gonna fuck you so full of my cum, plug you up with my knot until it catches. Such a good omega, you’ll look so beautiful with your stomach round with my pups. So damned sexy. I won’t be able to keep my hands off you!” Castiel’s breathing turned ragged and Sam arched his hips up, slamming the toy’s thick knot past the omega’s rim with a low groan. “Come for me, Cas…” He hissed in Castiel’s ear, grinning toothily when the other man whimpered his way through an untouched orgasm and went limp against Sam’s chest. 

 

Sam carefully scootched until he could stretch out along the length of the futon with Castiel pressed against him from their feet to their shoulders, keeping the false knot firmly buried inside the omega to maintain the illusion of being tied together. The younger man started shaking, and at first, Sam thought it was just from the cooling sweat between them until he heard a quiet sob. 

 

“Cas…?” The omega whimpered, sniffling miserably, and Sam was at a loss. “Angel, what’s wrong?”

 

“I’m so sorry, Sam!” The Winchester was having a hard time understanding what his boyfriend was trying to say, but he eventually deciphered it.

 

“Sorry for what, sweetheart?”

 

“I can’t give you children!”

 

_ Wait, WHAT?!  _

 

_ Does he think I was actually being serious? _

 

“Cas, I wasn’t being serious. You realize that, right? You asked for it in the middle of a heat surge, so I ran with the fantasy.” The omega peered at him over his shoulder, eyeing him dubiously. “Look. Even  _ if _ you weren’t badly sexually traumatized, and  _ if  _  you were a female omega capable of conceiving, and  _ if _ my sexuality extended to anything outside of you specifically, I  _ still _ wouldn’t knock you up without a thorough discussion about it outside of heat. And even then, I wouldn’t want to right now- we’re both in school! We couldn’t manage a baby right now!”

 

The omega rolled to face him and Sam immediately kissed away the tear tracks on his cheeks. “So you played into my fantasy again, even though it’s not something you want?” Castiel was scowling at him, his eyebrows scrunched together in the most adorable way, and Sam couldn’t help but smile. 

 

“Trust me, indulging your kinks is  _ not  _  a hardship.”

 

“...kink?”

 

Sam snorted. “A breeding kink is actually pretty commonplace, babe. And I guess you’re not the only one with it, between us.” He nuzzled into Castiel’s sex-mussed hair, breathing deeply and loving the scent of his fucked-out omega. “And besides, if you ever actually wanted kids there’s always adoption.” 

 

“Love you, Sam.” Castiel purred blearily. They were approaching the end of day three of the heat, and it was starting to wear on him. The omega yawned broadly, his eyes drooping, and Sam cuddled him even closer. The Alpha pulled a blanket over them both. 

 

“Get some sleep, baby.” 

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

When Castiel woke up, he was cradled against Sam’s firm chest. The bigger man was carrying him towards Sam’s bedroom, obviously intent on making them more comfortable, but the desire to be clean was more tempting than a soft bed.

 

“Bath?” Sam jumped- he obviously hadn’t realized that his burden was awake again. 

 

“Sure, baby.” The Alpha diverted his course to the bathroom. He settled the other man on the counter, cushioned by a towel, and started running a bath. One pouting look from his omega had him adding bath salts and bubbles, as well.

 

_ So fucking whipped. _

 

_ I really, really don’t care. _

 

“You mentioned wanting a shave, earlier.” Sam said mildly as he puttered around the bathroom. Castiel hummed in response. “Want me to help you?”

 

The omega paused, clearly mulling the idea over. “I guess. I mean, I’m a grown man. I’m capable of shaving myself-”

 

Sam cut him off. “Cas, I want to do this if you’ll let me.” The Alpha cranked up the puppy eyes, and Castiel relented with a sigh.

 

“Have at me, then.” Sam’s smile could rival the sun as he started digging through a drawer for shaving equipment, coming up with, of all things, a straight razor, a mug, and what looked like a badger hair brush. Castiel’s eyes widened comically.

 

“I’ve got a normal razor too, if you’d rather. But I’m really, really good with this.” He let Castiel see the wicked-looking blade. 

 

Finally, the omega offered up a shy smile. “I trust you, Sam.” Sam planted a soft, grateful kiss on the Omega’s lips and started whipping up some lather in the mug. He laid a towel over his forearm before dabbing the lather carefully around Castiel’s cheeks. Sam cupped his boyfriend’s chin, angling his face exactly the way he wanted it.

 

“Hold very still, ok?” Without pausing to let Cas answer, Sam made his first pass with the razor. True to his word, Sam’s strokes were quick and confident. He paused between every stroke to wipe hair and foam on the towel. The omega was quickly lulled into a near doze by Sam’s rhythmic ministrations, letting himself trust in the Alpha completely. 

 

“Pull your lips tight like this.” Sam murmured, and Castiel cracked an eye open to note the way his Alpha was demonstrating. He mimicked it and Sam deftly shaved his upper lip and then his chin. “All done!” Castiel felt the loss of Sam’s touch like a brand as the other man moved to turn off the tub, which was dangerously close to overflowing. Wordlessly, he allowed Sam to wipe his face with a warm cloth and strip his sweat pants off, then guide him over to the tub. Castiel sank into the hot water with a pornographic moan. Sam chuckled and began soaping the omega’s hair.

 

“You keep that up and I’m going to melt.”

 

“You say that like I object to Castiel-flavored goo.” 

 

Castiel snorted and splashed a handful of water at Sam without opening his eyes. “Just keep washing.”

 

“Yes, omega.”

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

It was just past midnight when Sam’s sensitive nose picked up the first notes of a heat surge. Castiel was asleep still, sniffling and whimpering against Sam’s sternum, and the Alpha was loathe to wake him up yet- even with an attentive Alpha, the omega was exhausted. But all too soon, Castiel started stirring and finally woke up.

 

“Alpha…” Castiel whined, desperately scenting the other man. 

 

“I’ve gotcha, Cas. Where’s your toy?”

 

The blue-eyed man outright hissed, baring his teeth and everything. “Fuck, I don’t want that thing! I’m so sick of cold silicone, and I  _ hate this so fucking much!” _ Sam blinked at the sudden, out of character outburst and nuzzled Castiel’s neck, checking his scent again. The omega’s hormones were spiking alarmingly hard, the oncoming surge building much faster than what Sam had become accustomed to over the last few days. The heady scent of desperate, horny omega filled his nose, making his head buzz like he had just pounded a six pack, and when Castiel ground against him, Sam couldn’t help but moan and thrust back. 

 

“Need you, Alpha…” 

 

_ Fuck, he smells so good! _

 

_ Oh, sonovabitch I want him so badly! _

 

_...Shit, am I going into Rut?! _

 

Sam did a quick inventory of how he was feeling, and breathed a sigh of relief when he noticed no symptoms that would signal an oncoming Rut. No, he was just horny. Really, really, strangely horny for a man who normally would rather stick his dick in an ant hole rather than an omega. 

 

Castiel rubbed up against him like a cat, further spreading his pheromone-drenched scent. “Want you, Sam.”

 

The Alpha’s brain ground to a complete halt as he tried to decide if Castiel meant what the Alpha thought he meant. “Babe?”

 

“I wish I could have your knot, Sam. Fuck, I want it so badly!”

 

That breathy plea was met with a moan torn from Sam’s chest. “It’s yours if you want it, omega.” Sam rumbled before he could quite process what he was saying. Castiel blinked, staring owlishly at the older man.

 

“Are you…. Sam, are you sure? Please, for fucks sake don’t tease me like this. Not now!” The omega babbled. 

 

Sam bit his lip to restrain a groan of frustration. “Shouldn’t  _ I  _ be asking  _ you _ that? I mean, you’re the one who was raped!” The omega slapped Sam’s sternum.

 

“And you’re Ace, but you’re offering up your body anyways. You’ve done nothing but give and give, indulging me in every way possible during this stupid shit. I won’t take this from you if it’s not what you really, truly want.” 

 

Sam had to question how his omega was this coherent while in the middle of a rising heat surge, but that could probably wait. He gently captured Castiel’s lips in a tender kiss. “I love you, Castiel. And you’re the only person,  _ ever _ , to make me want to be sexual with them. You’re special, unique. And if you really are ready to try taking a real knot, I’d like nothing more than for it to be mine.” 

 

Castiel heaved a happy sigh and started working his way out of his sweats and briefs, discarding them -and the slick pad the briefs had been holding in place- over the side of the bed. Sam followed suit, his heart threatening to hammer out of his chest. 

 

_ We’re really doing this… fuck, we’re  _ really _ doing this!  _ Arousal slammed through him like a freight train, causing the Alpha’s cock to fill so fast that it made his head spin.

 

“Just... “ Cas started, but a hitch in his throat cut off the rest of it.

 

“What is it, babe? Whatever it is… anything, anything at all, and I’ll do it.” 

 

The omega smiled at his Alpha’s earnest expression. “Can we be face to face? I need to see you.” 

 

Sam peppered kisses all over Castiel’s cheeks. “Of course, baby.” Two thick fingers wandered down the omega’s spine, over his tailbone, and followed the dip of his firm cheeks to the loose muscle he found there. Sam’s fingers sank in and easily crooked right into Castiel’s prostate, earning a gasp and a firm buck of his hips. 

 

“Quit teasing, Sam. You know I’m ready.” And he was- after over seventy-two hours of heat and more orgasms than he could count, from every possible method of release, his channel greedily sucked Sam’s fingers in. Sam wiggled them anyways, more to make Castiel squirm than anything else, before withdrawing them. He tugged the omega even closer and rucked his leg up over Sam’s hips, allowing the Alpha to nudge his cock into the right angle and position.

 

“Are you-”

 

“Sam, I swear if you ask me if I’m sure, I’m going to wear your balls for earrings!” 

 

With a laugh, Sam thrust just hard enough to pop the head of his cock through the ring of muscle. Both men froze, each anticipating a freak-out from the other, and they shared a laugh when they realized what they were doing. 

 

“Good?” Sam asked against Castiel’s lips. The omega surged forward, pressing most of Sam’s shaft into himself in one easy slide. Sam’s breath left him in a punched out groan.

 

“Good. Now… fuck me, Alpha.” The omega purred, rocking against Sam. Sam whimpered through gritted teeth as he obeyed, drawing back before driving into the other man. They moved together, both easing themselves into this entirely new sensation. Slowly picking up speed, Sam tweaked the depth and angle of penetration until Castiel squealed, telling the Alpha that he’d struck gold. He grinned wolfishly against the column of Castiel’s neck. The omega dug his nails into Sam’s shoulders and bucked his hips, dragging a surprised yelp from the Alpha when he rolled them over and started riding his cock the way he had the false one. Sam’s hands gripped Castiel’s creamy, muscled thighs with bruising strength as he hung on for the ride. 

 

As the tempo built towards the inevitable crescendo, Sam couldn’t help but start murmuring love and praise to the man over him. Castiel leaned down to kiss him, sloppily silencing the Alpha’s affectionate ramblings, and rode him hard. Every few thrusts, he swiveled his hips, dragging his wet rim over the Alpha’s burgeoning knot. Sam growled and met each thrust with one of his own, aiming for the omega’s sweet spot. Castiel went wild, fucking Sam as hard as he could and panting desperately against his lips.

 

“That’s it, sweet omega. Take what you want…  _ fuck… _ ride me, God you feel so damned good!” 

 

Castiel mewled and pressed down, letting Sam’s growing knot slip into him. Every thrust had it dragging in and out, spreading him so wide open that it felt like his rim might tear. Sam moaned desperately, fighting the urge to pound into Castiel’s heat.

 

“Gonna pop your knot, Alpha?” The omega’s taunting tone had Sam growling at the challenge and he grabbed Castiel’s hips, rolling them until the Alpha could settle between the other man’s legs and mount him properly.

 

“Cheeky little shit! You want my knot? Fine, I’ll give it to you!” Sam slammed in once, twice, three times before his knot swelled to its maximum and locked them together. A heartbeat later, the omega’s body clamped down around Sam’s shaft. He arched under Sam, sending splashes of cum as high as Sam’s sternum. His channel pulsed and clenched around Sam’s knot, dragging the Alpha along to his own orgasm.

 

“Fuck… oh fuck, Cas!” Sam howled, his voice shattering as his world threatened to white out completely. The omega’s body milked every drop of cum from the overwhelmed Alpha’s body, who barely caught himself before he collapsed and dropped all of his weight onto Castiel. Both men were gasping for breath as they came down from their shared high. 

 

The minutes stretched out in silence and Sam started to panic- what if Cas regretted what they’d just done? The Alpha would never forgive himself! He was just starting to really work himself into a state when Castiel bit his right pectoral muscle, startling a yelp out of the other man.

 

“Stop overthinking. I swear, I can hear it. I can certainly  _ smell _ it.” Sam rumbled a questioning noise, and Castiel bit him again. 

 

“Stop that!” 

 

“Quit freaking out, and I’ll quit biting.” The omega lapped at the spot he had abused, soothing it with his tongue. 

 

Sam murmured in approval at the more gentle attention. “That… that was amazing.”

 

“I have to agree.” The omega chuckled against Sam’s chest. “Would you be ok with it happening again?”

 

The Alpha took his time considering his answer, petting the other man’s back as he mulled it over. “Not frequently, but maybe for special occasions? And your heats, obviously.” And finally it was out in the open- the knowledge that Cas would never be free of the unwanted biological imperative. 

 

“You know, I’m not nearly as upset about heats as I used to be… not if I’ve got you to help me through them.” Sam rumbled his approval of that concept, nuzzling at his boyfriend’s smooth cheek. His shifting around caused his knot to pull at Castiel’s rim and the omega squealed, his cock starting to fill all over again. Sam snickered.

 

“Are you always this insatiable?” 

 

“I think this is the last surge. It’s always the strongest. Can’t get enough of my fake knot.” The Alpha suspected that Castiel had brought that chunk of silicone up on purpose to rile him up, and Sam played right into it.

 

“You’re never using that damned thing ever again. You’re  _ mine, _ Cas.” 

 

Castiel snickered. “Then you’re throwing away your Rut sleeve.” 

 

“What, are you gonna help me through it if I ever go into Rut again?” Sam teased, but he stopped short at the letcherous grin on his boyfriend’s face. “Oh.” Castiel rocked his hips, causing a trickle of cum and slick to escape around Sam’s slowly deflating knot. Sam groaned.

 

“‘Oh’, indeed. Maybe we could time it so you go off your suppressants during summer breaks? My heats have always come twice a year- summer and near Christmas.” Ruts tended to be a lot more sporadic than heats, occurring whenever an Alpha spent time in proximity to an omega in heat or who was about to enter it in addition to a yearly cycle.

 

Castiel’s wiggling was causing his flagging erection to perk back up quickly, and Sam nibbled at the omega’s prominent collarbone. “I think I like the sound of that.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking that there might be one more chapter in this, maybe an epilogue of the boys down the road. Would anyone be interested in that?


	14. Chapter 14

“I don't think I can do this, Sam.” 

 

Sam smiled and nuzzled his omega behind the ear, subtly scent marking him. He pressed a kiss there before returning to what he had been doing- fixing Castiel’s rumpled collar.

 

“You're gonna be fine. We’ll be in the audience, cheering like maniacs.”

 

The younger man scoffed. “That's half of what worries me. No signs, Sam.”

 

“But-”

 

“No ‘buts', or you sleep on the couch for a week.”

The Alpha’s jaw snapped shut, biting back whatever plea he had been about to make. He knew as well as Castiel did that the omega’s heat would be starting in the next day or two at maximum, and he didn't want to be exiled for the duration. He had stopped taking his Rut suppressants in anticipation and was looking forward to a solid week of fucking like rabbits. 

 

_ Thank fuck it didn't land  _ on  _ graduation day! _

 

Sam smiled. His boyfriend was hours from receiving his first of many diplomas in the medical field. The next fall would mark the end of his undergrad work and the beginning of medical school, with the omega planning on pursuing Doctorates in genetics and pharmaceuticals concurrently. The Alpha had graduated the year prior, and had quickly been snapped up by a local law office. 

 

The scent of nervous omega reached his nose and Sam cuddled the other man close to his chest. “I'm so proud of you, angel.”

 

Castiel smiled against Sam's neck. “And I'm proud of you, Alpha.” They  _ did  _ have a lot to be proud of. In three years, they had really built a life for themselves. During Sam’s junior year, he had accepted a paid internship and they had been able to afford to move out of their cramped, drafty apartment. It had been bittersweet, leaving what had been their first home together, but their new place was so much more comfortable. The selling point had been a large, fenced in backyard that allowed Sam to adopt his first dog, a bouncy chocolate lab by the name of Moose. The other two (a golden retriever named Bailey and a corgi mix that refused to answer to anything but Gigantor) were entirely Castiel’s fault.

 

The omega’s watch chirped at him and he nearly jumped clear out of his skin. “Time to go, babe.” Sam reminded him, hustling the increasingly nerve wracked man towards the door. 

 

“Where are my robes?!” Cas dug his heels in, and after three years together Sam new a stalling tactic when he saw it.

 

“Already in the car. So is your cap, and tassel, and the fifteen ropes and cords you earned.” 

 

Castiel snorted at the exaggeration. “There's only four and you know it.”

 

“ONLY four? Cas, you're such a disappointment. I'm disowning you.” Dean poked his head in the front door, a shit-eating grin plastered on his face. 

 

“Shut it, Mister G.E.D.” Sam popped his brother upside the head as he all but dragged Castiel out to the driveway and shoved him into the Impala’s back seat. True to his word, Dean had repaired his Baby so well that you would never have known that she had been totaled. Sam crawled in beside him, as Dean’s girlfriend was already occupying the front passenger seat.

 

“Hey, Lisa! Hi, Ben!” Sam greeted the vibrant, sassy beta. She rolled her eyes indulgently.

 

“You know he can't hear you, right?” The brunette patted her swollen belly affectionately. She was a little over seven months along and really showing. Dean slipped into the car and leaned over to kiss first her, then her stomach. 

 

“Don't you listen to Mommy, buddy. Uncle Sammy loves you almost as much as Daddy does!” Dean cooed at the bump, getting a sharp kick from his unborn son for his troubles. Sam rolled his eyes and mimed gagging himself at Cas. The omega snorted. 

 

The drive to campus was quick and filled with easy laughter as the soon-to-be-parents bickered good naturally in regards to Dean playing AC/DC for Ben.

 

“I swear, he's gonna come out wearing a leather jacket and throwing horns.” The way she said it proved that Lisa wasn’t nearly as put off by the concept as she pretended to be. 

 

“So, when are you going to make an honest man out of my brother?” Sam teased, bringing up yet another frequently played out pretend argument.

 

“Oh, who needs all that crap. Rings and paperwork mean nothing anyways.” Dean thumped the steering wheel to punctuate his point.

 

Lisa chuckled. “Like anyone could tie you down, anyways.” In truth, the pair were joined at the hip. Dean hasn't so much as glanced at another woman after the bendy yoga instructor had waltzed into his life. He’d fallen at her feet and that was that. A year and a half later, two pink lines on a stick had solidified the bond, and everything else was just details to them. Dean had immediately retired as a bounty hunter and accepted the mechanic’s job offered to him by the Winchester’s father figure, Bobby Singer. You couldn't have pried the older Alpha out of his newfound domesticity with every slice of apple pie in America.

 

“Where’s mom?” Castiel was wringing his hands, and everyone in the car could smell his anxious scent. Sam covered the omega’s hands with his own.

 

“Already on campus. Breathe, angel. You can do this.” Castiel took a couple of deep breaths to settle himself, squeezing Sam's hand gratefully.

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

Sam, Dean, Lisa, and Naomi Novak were indeed sitting as close to the stage as they could get as Castiel’s graduating class walked across one by one to receive their diplomas and awards. They all clapped politely for the rest of the students, but went nuts the second Cas set foot on the stage. Sam could see the omega’s blush from where he was sitting and screamed even louder, getting an embarrassed but pleased grin in his general direction from the younger man. They had left the signs they had made in the trunk of the Impala at Sam’s request, though Dean had snorted something resembling  _ ‘you're so damned whipped’.  _ Sam had merely pointed at Lisa’s stomach with a smug expression, and the elder Winchester had shut up. It didn't stop him from shooting Sam the bird when her back was turned, though.

 

The rest of the ceremony passed far slower than Sam would have liked as he repeatedly palmed the small velvet box in his coat pocket. Naomi finally reached over and forcibly removed his hand from the pocket, clasping it in her own with a mock-reproachful glare. A few moments later, Lisa leaned around Dean and kicked him for tapping his foot. Alpha did his best to stop fidgeting after that.

 

The Dean of the college dismissed the graduates, who threw their caps all at once and fled the building, screaming and cheering the whole way. Sam took the stairs of the auditorium three at a time, making a beeline for the tree he had agreed to meet his boyfriend at. He actually beat Cas there, turning around just in time to see the omega sprinting towards him, black and red robes flapping behind him like wings. He threw himself into Sam's arms and the Alpha scooped him up, spinning the laughing omega around several times before setting him back on the ground and claiming his lips in a joyful kiss. Over Castiel’s shoulder, Sam saw Dean pull out his phone and start recording, waving a thumbs up when he was ready. His stomach dropped into the vicinity of his toes as Sam clasped Castiel’s hand in his own massive one, fumbling into his pocket.

 

“Castiel, you know I love you.” It wasn’t a question, and the omega cocked his head in confusion, both at the statement and the use of his full name.

 

“Of course I know, Sam. What-”

 

_ Now or never, Winchester… fucking nut up and do it! _

 

Sam hit one knee harder than he had really meant to. “Willyoumarryme?” It all came out in one big blur and he dropped the damned box in his haste. Thankfully, Cas had years of practice at translating ‘Nervous Sam’ speak and he immediately broke out into a grin so wide that his cheeks ached, joining Sam on the soft grass and picking up the ring box. He handed it back to a tomato red Sam, who snapped it open and presented the black titanium band.

 

“Come here, you absolute moose. Of course I'll marry you.” Sam shakily took Castiel's hand and slid the ring into place to a chorus of whoops and cheers from their family and a large group of Castiel’s classmates. Lisa threw several handfuls of confetti at them as they kissed again.

 

As they broke apart and got to their feet, Castiel very deliberately rubbed up against Sam and made sure that the Alpha got a good whiff of his scent. Sam's eyes went dark when he picked up the very first notes of heat scent. The omega grinned wickedly when Sam’s scent changed in answer. 

 

“Let's go home, Alpha.” 

 

oooooOOOOOooooo

 

This wasn't the first time they had let their hormones line up and indulged themselves, but Sam always felt like a blushing virgin during the first coupling of the cycle. You'd think that the Alpha would be used to it after three years, but no- the first one was always different, special in some way. Especially this time- this time they came together before the heat and Rut overtook them completely, and Sam was already balls deep in his mate when his Rut hormones slammed into him full force. Castiel's answering needy mewl told Sam that the omega could smell it and he grinned ferally as his lazy thrusts picked up speed, but even in the grips of his basest instincts he was gentle, tender even.

 

“Love you, Cas.” Sam growled. The omega sank his teeth into Sam's shoulder in response, sending a surge of lust through the older man. His knot started to catch, stretching his lover’s rim as far as it could go as he fucked into him. One particularly well-aimed thrust nailed Castiel’s sweet spot and the omega keened. A fresh surge of slick wet Sam’s cock and that was it. Game over. The Alpha came with a howl, locked firmly into the other man’s body as Castiel’s shaking body milked him for all he was worth. 

 

“A-Alpha!” Cas groaned, rocking lazily up to meet him just a couple more times before he, too, crested the wave of pleasure and spilled between their sweat-soaked bodies. 

 

Sam rolled them to the side, rumbling contentedly when Castiel draped his weight over the taller man’s chest and hips. The omega grinned dopily, cum drunk and momentarily sated. He lapped at the bruise he’d bitten into Sam’s collarbone, soothing it.

 

“Hmm… you got me good, babe.” If Sam craned his neck, he could just barely see the purple blotch and teeth-shaped dents. Castiel grinned up at him unrepentantly.

 

“Gotta mark my territory  _ somehow _ until I can get you a ring.” 

 

Sam chuckled. “I'll get one tattooed on if that'll make you feel better.” He said it in jest, but if the omega asked it of him, he’d be in the tattoo chair the first morning after their cycles abated. It wasn't like it would be his first, anyways. As though he could hear Sam's thoughts, Castiel kissed the black star-and-sunburst on his pectoral that Sam shared with his brother, then traced the edge of the feathers that spread down the backs of both shoulders and Sam's triceps, ending at his elbows. Over his left hip, where his father had always carried it, was the image of a Colt revolver that had been John Winchester’s favorite firearm. A simple rose and the script “Mary Winchester” adorned the other hip. The Latin phrase for “family doesn't end in blood” spanned his clavicle.

 

Castiel smiled. Sam’s whole life was indelibly etched into his skin, if you just new how to read it. “You already wear wings for your ‘angel’,” Sam could all but see the air quotes around the familiar term of endearment, “what more could I ask for?” 

 

“It's not like it would be a hardship, babe.” And yeah, the Alpha's ink addiction was a little out of control, but you'd never know it if you saw him in the suit and tie he wore to work every day. His mentor pointedly ignored the short ponytail Sam sported to keep his hair out of his eyes. 

 

“I know, but hand and neck tattoos could cost you your career right now. No, a ring is perfect. Maybe when you're a senior at the firm, we can revisit the idea.” 

 

Sam pretended to pout. “You’re ruining all my fun.” Castiel's eyes darkened and his voice dropped an octave, growing truly gravelly as a fresh wave of heat hormones colored his scent. He rolled the amused Alpha onto his back.

 

“Let me make it up to you.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we have it, the last chapter. As always, thank you for coming along on this adventure with me!


End file.
